Gold Dust Woman
by CommanderHeartthrob
Summary: At 23, Corey Luna, the daughter of Stevie Nicks, is an instructor at Miss Robichaux's Academy. She has been a friend of Cordelia's for as long as she remembers, but her world is turned upside-down when the Supreme, Fiona Goode, returns to the academy with some unexpected information: She's dying, and it is imperative that the coven finds the next Supreme before she bites the dust.
1. one

CINNAMON. CHARRED CEDAR. MILDEWED PARCHMENT. The smoke of a lit cigarette wafting through the open window. A bustling New Orleans street muffling the crinkle of the pile of paperwork in her hands folding over. Alone, anyone would find the flooding of their senses to be a distraction. For Corey, it was just another day in her office at _Miss Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies_.

She flipped through the files for the brand-new addition to their collection of misfits. The pile next to her held the documentation of the other recently transferred students: Nan, Queenie, Madison Montgomery. The pad of her thumb skimmed the description of the newest girl's powers as she brought her cup of coffee— black, two sugars— to her lips.

**𝚉𝙾𝙴****𝙱𝙴𝙽𝚂𝙾𝙽**

𝟻'𝟺"

𝙱𝚁𝙾𝚆𝙽 𝙷𝙰𝙸𝚁

𝙱𝚁𝙾𝚆𝙽 𝙴𝚈𝙴𝚂

𝟷𝟽 𝚈𝙴𝙰𝚁𝚂 𝙾𝙻𝙳

**_𝙺𝙽𝙾𝚆𝙽_** **_𝙿𝙾𝚆𝙴𝚁𝚂_****_—_**

𝙱𝙻𝙰𝙲𝙺𝚆𝙸𝙳𝙾𝚆:

𝚃𝙷𝙴 _𝙸𝙽𝚅𝙾𝙻𝚄𝙽𝚃𝙰𝚁𝚈_ 𝙼𝙰𝙶𝙸𝙲𝙰𝙻 𝙰𝙱𝙸𝙻𝙸𝚃𝚈 𝚃𝙾 𝙺𝙸𝙻𝙻 𝚂𝙾𝙼𝙴𝙾𝙽𝙴 𝙱𝚈 𝙲𝙰𝚄𝚂𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙵𝙰𝚃𝙰𝙻 𝙷𝙴𝙼𝙼𝙾𝚁𝙰𝙶𝙴𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝚁𝙾𝚄𝙶𝙷 𝚂𝙴𝚇𝚄𝙰𝙻 𝙸𝙽𝚃𝙴𝚁𝙲𝙾𝚄𝚁𝚂𝙴 𝚄𝙿𝙾𝙽 𝙿𝙴𝙽𝙴𝚃𝚁𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽.

𝚅𝙸𝙲𝚃𝙸𝙼𝚂: 𝙾𝙽𝙴.

𝙾𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚁𝙺𝙽𝙾𝚆𝙽 USERS: ONE.

𝚄𝙽𝙰𝚆𝙰𝚁𝙴 𝙾𝙵 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝚃𝚁𝚄𝙴 𝙴𝚇𝙸𝚂𝚃𝙴𝙽𝙲𝙴 𝙾𝙵 𝚆𝙸𝚃𝙲𝙷𝙴𝚂 𝚄𝙽𝚃𝙸𝙻 𝚃𝚁𝙰𝙽𝚂𝙵𝙴𝚁𝚁𝙴𝙳 𝚃𝙾 𝙵𝙰𝙲𝙸𝙻𝙸𝚃𝚈.

The redhead sighed as she closed the manila folder and tossed it haphazardly against the other three files on her desk; another witch that knew nothing of their lineage. Corey wondered if their coven would soon die out altogether. When she was young, her mother would tell her stories of their ancestry— bedtime stories for when the tour bus felt less like home and more like a shuttle to nowhere.

The new girls never had the chance to experience the folklore. Their heritage. Tales of the true witches of Salem, the ones who fled to New Orleans in search of a new home to practice magic. The only member of their stitched-together coven that knew what a _Supreme_ was, other than Cordelia and Corey, was Madison.

She had heard the tales of the musician in the 18th century, Selene Nicks, who reigned as the Supreme and took Marianne Wharton— the founder of the current witch safe-haven— under her wing as her protégé and eventual successor.

Corey hadn't seen much of the current Supreme, Fiona Goode, these days. The woman was always jet-setting somewhere, too busy to show face for a ragtag group of girls with stagnant powers. Her own mother warned her that she'd only see the Supreme if there was something Fiona needed. There was never a problem drastic enough to warrant a visit from 'the witch with all the power'.

The front door of the academy swung open. As it slammed shut, it shook the walls— and Corey from her thoughts. She pushed her chair out, standing from her desk. She adjusted her top and brushed off any eraser shavings from her jeans before looking up at the tall ivory colored walls, taking in a deep breath.

While it wasn't her job to welcome the new witches, Cordelia was away on business. This left only herself and the younger girls to welcome their newest addition. She exited her office, furrowing her brow when she heard a scream coming from the main hallway.

"O, dark father, we offer this flesh up to you, blood, life, and all." Madison's voice was muffled by the long nosed mask on her face, but Corey could still tell that it was her. She rolled her eyes, realizing that the girls were hazing the newcomer, and angrily hurried in their direction.

"Get the hell off me!" An unfamiliar voice called out, panicked and afraid. When Corey rounded the corner, she took note of the three hooded figures hovering over a girl pinned to the table. The one flailing frantically, trying to shake the hooded figures from her, matched the description of Zoe Benson. Corey watched with raised brows as the flames from the candles that surrounded the room grew larger.

"Ladies," Corey called out, leaning against a pillar in the doorway. "That's more than enough." Madison removed her mask in a huff. She rolled her eyes as she played with her hair, trying to do anything to distract from the fact that she had been the one to instigate the initiation.

"Jesus, Sabrina, relax." The blonde's tone was a combination of annoyance and boredom. Zoe's eyes darted from Madison to Corey, her expression quickly shifting from disdain to shock. "We're just messing with you."

"Holy shit. Are you..." Zoe started, pulling her knees into her chest.

"Madison Montgomery, movie star." Corey rolled her eyes. She didn't need to see the girl's face to know that she was smiling. It was ingrained in her voice, her favorite title to remind everyone she met that she thought she was _somebody_ important.

"Shit," Queenie flipped her mask off of her face with the back of her hand, shaking her head. "When's the last time you made a movie, girl?"

"A-and you're..." Zoe added, turning to look at Corey. The redhead kicked off of the pillar, taking a few steps to join the rest of the group.

"Corey Nicks," she sent a smirk in Madison's direction, adding her own title to her name. "Musician, actress, _daughter of Stevie_, and an instructor here at the academy."

"And Madison's _girlfriend_," Nan chirped, her slight lisp growing louder as she removed her mask to reveal a cheeky grin. Madison's head snapped in her direction. The actress was a fish out of water, her panicked eyes only accompanied by a flexing jaw as she tried to find the right words to say in order to contradict the youngest witch. "I'm Nan, hi."

"It's complicated," Corey mumbled. Her glare burned a hole in the poor naïve girl who would surely become the target of an angry Madison if it was ever made public knowledge by anyone other than the actress herself. The battle with Madison's PR Manager already felt like pulling teeth after the first time their relationship was leaked; their cover up was more telling than the one-off source selling their private life to tabloids.

Madison let out a huff as she tossed her mask onto the table. She quickly looked down at her feet, defeated. No one was supposed to find out, but Nan used her clairvoyance to her advantage when it came to secrets. She should have known better than to expect the redhead to deny their relationship to the new witch.

"Zoe," the new girl sighed. She looked between the four girls in front of her. As her gaze fixated on Corey, her brows raised slightly.

"Queenie," the girl from before added, nodding in Zoe's direction. She was larger than the other two cloaked witches, both in height and stature. Her dark complexion directly contrasted the ivory walls behind her.

"So bored now," Madison rolled her eyes, looking back up at Corey. She sighed, crossing her arms over her chest as she shifted her weight from her heels to the balls of her feet. Corey anxiously itched her nose with the nail of her thumb, not sure how to continue the conversation. She wanted to reassure the blonde, but she didn't know if the girl even wanted to be shown affection after Nan's comment.

"So, is this all of you?" Zoe asked, still seated on top of the table. She rocked anxiously, her eyes scanning the group in front of her once more.

"At the moment," Cordelia chimed in from afar. She emerged from the hall that led to the kitchen, her blonde hair brushing against her shoulders as she held her head high. Corey's focus snapped in the direction of the older woman, her brow furrowed.

"Delia?" She asked, stepping away from the group. "I thought you were out of the office today?"

"I just got back," Cordelia replied, looking to Corey for a moment. The redhead nodded, acknowledging the older woman's comment, as the rest of the girls looked down at their feet. "Cordelia Foxx, Headmistress." She paused, her eyes scanning the group in front of her. There was an awkward weight suspended over the girls, an uncomfortable mixture of anxiousness and regret.

"All right, girls, there's a van full of groceries in the driveway that needs unloading." Zoe swung her legs over the edge of the table, standing up as Cordelia continued. "I'll show Zoe to her room, then we meet for midday gathering." When no one dared to move, Cordelia crossed her arms over her chest. Corey turned to see Madison rolling her eyes in frustration.

"Let's go," Cordelia urged. She sent the three young girls scattering with her sudden change in tone. Corey remained planted, leaning against the table Zoe was previously seated on. The headmistress smiled softly at the two girls remaining in the room. "Corinna, would you mind watching those three? I need someone to make sure they put everything away correctly." Cordelia asked, taking a step forward.

"Of course," Corey nodded, quickly running a hand through her curls. She turned towards Zoe briefly. "Hey, I'm sorry about all that." She sighed as she took a step forward. "Madison likes to treat this place like it's a sorority house. It's really the only entertainment she gets these days." Her tongue dipped out to wet her bottom lip as she shook her head, the sincerity seeping from her voice as she spoke.

"It's fine, really," Zoe replied, shifting her weight awkwardly. Corey pulled a coal colored cigarette out of the breast pocket of her shirt. She gave Zoe a soft smile before turning and heading down the hall to follow the direction of the other girls.

Once out of sight of Cordelia, she stuck the butt of the stick between her lips, focusing on the end for a moment to light it. As she neared the open kitchen door, she couldn't help but laugh at the three girls that stood in a huddle near the large van. She took a single step outside.

The moment her heel touched concrete, angry scolding whispers were replaced by an eerie silence. The huddle dispersed, immediately taking to the task at hand. The witches hurried past Corey as they pulled groceries inside, causing the redhead to swallow hard.

"Where did you even find these?" Corey asked, an attempt to break the tension in the air. She nodded to the cloaks and masks piled on the sidestep that led to the kitchen as she flicked the ash from the end of her cigarette away from herself.

"They were in a storage room," Nan responded quickly, grabbing a handful bags from the back of the van as she spoke. "Madison thought it would be fun to..." The blonde cut off the end of Nan's sentence, rolling her eyes.

"I may have come up with the idea, but _you_ are the one who went snooping." Corey let out a dry laugh, her head nodding backward slightly as she turned to look between the two girls.

"I'm not mad, I was just curious," she said with a shrug. She brought her cigarette back up to her lips. Before Corey could even pull another drag from the stick between her fingers, Madison managed to take it from her hand. As their fingers quickly brushed against each other, a spark flickered at the point of contact; an electrical current shorting at the backs of the redhead's fingers.

"_Rude_," the redhead huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. Her gaze moved between Madison's hand which delicately held the black stick, and her light pink lips. The contrast between the two pulled more focus to the blonde's porcelain skin.

She was the human equivalent of an antique doll; small, frail, delicate, doe-eyed, and always made up to look like she belonged to be somewhere far more important than she currently was. "You could have at least _asked_ instead of just snatching it from me." The blonde rolled her eyes, leaning against the wall next to Corey while taking a drag from the cigarette.

"When do I ever ask for permission?" Madison asked, arching her brows at the redhead as she let out a puff of smoke. Corey snatched her cigarette back, this time making sure she refrained from letting their skin touch in the slightest. She quickly pointed to the van.

"If Cordelia catches you _not_ helping, my head will be the next thing in one of her greenhouse's preserve jars." Her brows pulled themselves upwards in concern.

"I like your head right where it is," a smirk crawled across Madison's lips. She sighed as she kicked off the wall. She walked backwards, her focus on the redhead as she continued talking. "But I also like it..."

"_Madison_," Corey warned, cutting off the rest of the girl's sentence. Queenie rolled her eyes, grabbing a handful of bags as she made her way into the estate.

"What, it's true," the blonde said with a smirk. She grabbed a single bag of groceries before turning back towards the entry to the kitchen. Corey rolled her eyes. "I'm _helping_," she wiggled the bag of oranges in the air, adjusting her stance to keep her stiletto heels from sinking in the dirt that lined the edge of the asphalt driveway.

"Just go," Corey sighed. She waved her hand towards the door. "There is no winning with you." Madison smirked triumphantly as she sauntered into the kitchen.

"You know," Queenie groaned as she walked back outside. "Cordelia is going to figure out you're playing favorites one way or another." She sighed as she made her way back to the trunk of the van. She grabbed two fists full of bags, shifting her weight as she placed a box of vegetables against her hip.

"I'm not _playing favorites_, Queenie," Corey sighed, shaking her head as she spoke with her free hand. "I treat you all the same way, no matter what our _connections_ are." Queenie laughed, throwing her head back.

"Oh, sure," the girl said, sarcastically. "I don't see anyone else sneaking into your room at night though." She shrugged. A cheeky grin flashed across face when Corey couldn't help but let her jaw drop at the comment.

"Watch yourself, Queenie," Corey scolded. "I wouldn't want Madison to _rag doll_ you." Corey walked towards the trunk of the van. She flicked out her cigarette before grabbing the last of the bags. She quickly closed the trunk, turning to face the snarky witch. "Go on," she prodded. She pointed towards the open door to the kitchen front of her. "And have Nan clean up these cloaks and masks and put them back where she found them before Cordelia gets even more upset about it."

"What, is _Glinda the good witch_ going to throw a tantrum?" Madison asked, leaning against the kitchen island with a raised brow. Her lips arched upwards in a smirk, her tongue jutting out to wet the corner of her mouth as her brow twitched slightly.

"I wouldn't want to wait to find out," Corey responded, glaring at the blonde. She placed the bags down on the counter before running a hand through her curls once more. "Put these away and meet us in the parlor for the _stupid_ meeting." She pointed at the groceries before pointing to Queenie and Madison, earning an eye roll from both girls. Before either of them could protest, Corey left the room. She headed towards the room the group had been in previously, finding Cordelia and Zoe already seated in front of the fireplace.

"In its heyday, the academy was home to as many as 60 girls," Cordelia continued as if Corey wasn't there, giving Zoe a quick history lesson on the building and their coven. "Over the years, those numbers dwindled." Zoe leaned forward, placing her clasped hands against her knees as Corey took a seat next to Cordelia.

"Why?" The new witch asked, furrowing her brow. Cordelia sighed, shaking her head.

"We're a dying breed, Zoe," the headmistress said. "Many of the families who knew they carried the bloodline made a choice not to reproduce. The others are sitting in front of you." Zoe fiddled with her fingers anxiously as she prepared to ask another question.

"So, what's a Supreme?" She asked, looking between Corey and Cordelia.

"An average witch is born with a few natural gifts," when Corey spoke up, Cordelia looked over at her with a soft smile, tilting her head. "But in each generation, there is one woman who embodies what some say... Is all of them. That witch is the Supreme." As she finished her sentence, the rest of the girls filed in, taking their respective seats around the coffee table.

"Are you the Supreme?" Zoe asked, locking eyes with Cordelia. Madison and Queenie couldn't help but laugh, which earned them a glare from the redheaded girl.

"No," Cordelia sighed as the other girls stopped laughing. "I'm like you. Just a witch." Corey could tell that the laughter hit a soft spot for the older woman. She placed a reassuring hand on Cordelia's lap, the blonde interlocking their fingers as she continued to speak. Corey could feel Madison's glare burning into the side of her head but she chose to ignore it. "And a teacher, like Corinna. We're here to help you identify your gifts and teach you how to control them."

"She means to suppress them," Queenie spoke softly, almost groaning at the idea of learning how to properly control her powers.

"Not suppression," Cordelia snapped, turning to look at the girl. "Control." Madison rolled her eyes, quickly turning to face Zoe.

"They think it's still the 1600s," She wiggled her head as she spoke, her attitude radiating off her.

"No," Corey sighed, turning to look at Madison. "Back then, our kind understood the dangers. Today, those with our gifts know nothing of their ancestry." Cordelia chimed in, squeezing Corey's hand once.

"Too many girls aren't lucky enough to have found us," she spoke with control and dedication, simultaneously putting Madison and Queenie in their places while trying to educate Zoe. "Or weren't identified in time for us to have found them. Like that poor Cajun girl just outside Lafayette a few months back. _Misty Day_." She sighed, finally letting go of Corey's hand to lean on her elbow. Madison relaxed in her seat at the sight.

"She wasn't much older than any of you. And she had a gift; the power of resurgence." Cordelia's smile could be heard in her voice as she spoke, pointing around the circle with one finger. "Misty could reach into that place between life and death and draw a soul back from the precipice, back to this side, back to life." Her voice was filled with more determination as she continued her rambling, proud to be able to teach this girl's unfortunate story to the group in front of her.

"To some, this appeared to be the God-touched power of resurrection." Cordelia paused for a moment, leaning back in her seat as she swallowed hard. "To others, necromancy."

"So, what happened to her?" Zoe asked, her brow furrowed in confusion.

"The same thing that's happened to witches throughout the centuries," Corey spoke up, looking down at her hands that now rest in her lap. She swallowed hard, finishing her thought aloud. "She was burned at the stake." There was a moment of silence around them as the girls looked down at their laps, nodding in affirmation.

"We are under siege, ladies," Cordelia spoke up, breaking the wall of silence around them. "Our way of life, our very existence, is always at risk." Nan took a quiet sip from her teacup, pinky up, as the headmistress spoke. Zoe looked between Corey and Cordelia with a slightly gaping mouth as she took in the information in a state of shock. "Know this or face extinction."


	2. two

THE SOUND OF A CELLPHONE PINGING FROM ACROSS the room grabbed Madison's attention. She sat on the edge of the large bed with her feet tucked underneath her, her head turned downward, observing the other witch across the room from the corner of her eye. She fidgeted with the hem of her shirt as she watched Corey shuffling through shelves, trying to reorganize her books and records; a way to make the otherwise prison-feeling bedroom more comfortable. The redhead sighed as she reached up and grabbed her phone from one of the shelves above her.

"Anything interesting?" Madison asked, growing bored of solely remaining within the confines of the academy. Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth, her brows arching upward in anticipation. Corey placed her phone face down on the floor next to her, a hum emitting from her lips as her fingertips skimmed the spines of the books directly in front of her face.

"Fiction or poetry?" She kept her attention on the shelves as she picked up another book from the pile to her right and continued to organize alphabetically. "Classic or Modern?" Her tongue jutted out of the side of her mouth, a sign that she was focused on the task at hand. Madison rolled her eyes, a quiet huff escaping her nostrils as she laid back against the comforter.

"I meant on the _phone_, Cor," the blonde sighed, turning her head to continue to watch the other girl work. "Any interesting news? An invitation somewhere? _Something_ fun to distract from eternal damnation in this _witch prison_?" She groaned at the chuckle that left Corey's lips. The redhead craned her neck to look at the other girl, a smirk and a shake of her head accompanying the spark in her green eyes as they locked with Madison's gold ones.

"Just some frat party out in town," she knew that saying the words was a mistake with how quickly the blonde's face lit up. "Nothing all that exciting." Madison scoffed, turning her attention to the ceiling above her. The pink and orange hues of the sun setting caught the decorative molding in a way that made the flower patterns more appealing from her place on the mattress.

"What's more exciting than a _party_ after you've spent months unable to leave the world's most boring reform school," Madison picked at the hem of her shirt once more, her cheek finding its way in between her teeth as she struggled to come up with the words to say. Corey knew the motions well, her shoulders slouching as she tilted her head at the other girl.

"Maddie, you know I can't go with you," she sighed, a slight shake of her head as she used her palms to pivot so that she was fully facing the other girl. She used a hand to toss her hair slightly before looking down at the ground in front of her. Corey knew that Madison needed some time to get away from the academy and unwind. She also knew that there wasn't anyone around that she trusted to keep an eye on the blonde, especially when word would travel quickly that there was a _celebrity_ at a local frat party without the girl known publicly as her _'best friend'_. "I promised Cordelia—"

"Yeah, I get it," the blonde groaned, rolling her jaw as she scrunched her nose, trying to keep herself from sniffling. She knew that the redhead wouldn't do anything to keep her from being able to go out on her own, but it hurt her to know that she wouldn't set her plans aside to forget about the coven and their rules for a while. "Cordelia and the coven come first." Corey's gaze locked onto the other girl. Her brow furrowed slightly as she tilted her head.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" She placed a hand on the book in her lap, her fingers curling around the spine tightly as she sat up taller. She shimmied slightly, an attempt to get a better look at the other girl's face and body language. Madison's hands dropped to her sides as she rolled her eyes.

"Oh, please," her head turned to look at Corey once again, her nose twitching slightly as she tried to keep her lip from pulling up in a snarl. She was sure she was overreacting, but she couldn't let it show in her features. "I see the way she looks at you." She ran her tongue against her front teeth, trying to keep the words from lurching out into the atmosphere. "And the way that you defend her," she swallowed hard, her attempt at keeping her feelings to herself remaining unsuccessful.

"Maddie," Corey's furrowed brow relaxed, her lips tugging downward in a frown. "It's not like that, really." Her fingers relaxed as she placed the book against the light colored wood panels of the floor, pushing up to stand and move the short distance across the room to her bed. "Cordelia's a family friend, and my superior," she spoke softly, pulling the other girl into her lap as she sat down, "but there is nothing going on between the two of us. She's married, and I—"

_I only want you; I wouldn't do that to you; I am in love with you._

The redhead swallowed hard, her head shaking slightly as the corners of her lips tugged upwards for a fraction of a second. "And I'm just trying to help her get some work done. There's more to my job than teaching classes and _looking pretty_." Madison's hand moved to cover her mouth from the smirk that broke out, but she couldn't hide the light laugh that managed to bubble up from her chest and escape through the paper thin opening between her lips.

* * *

Corey stood over the wooden table in the greenhouse, using a mortar and pestle to crush herbs. Assisting Cordelia was a daunting task but she couldn't complain; it kept her mind occupied on the nights she didn't have a trio of young witches to teach. She looked up at the older witch who worked with her back turned to her. Taking inventory of the items that surrounded them, Corey couldn't help but put the pieces together on her own.

"A fertility potion?" She asked. She hadn't meant to, but her lips started moving before she could stop them. Cordelia froze, straightening her back as she stood taller. The blonde cleared her throat, tilting her head slightly before replying.

"Hank and I have been having some," Cordelia paused, sighing as she used one hand to brush a loose hair out of her face. "Unforeseen issues while trying to conceive." Corey placed the pestle down gently, her features softening as she observed Cordelia's defensive form.

"And you're sure this is the right solution?" Corey was carful with her tone, not wanting to come off as condescending. Cordelia sighed, her head dropping to look down at her hands.

"I'm not sure, but I seem to be running out of options." The blonde finally turned to look at Corey, the corner of her lip slipping between her teeth anxiously. The redhead nodded, her palms flat against the table in front of her.

"Understood," she spoke softly, her eyes locking with Cordelia's. "I just don't like meddling with fate if it can be avoided, you know that." Before Cordelia could attempt to respond, Corey felt a pain shoot through her right hand. She let out a hiss, unable to pull her palm from the table. She lifted her left hand up, pressing her the knuckles of her fist against the sharp edge of her teeth as her nose scrunched.

"Ow, _fuck_, that hurts," she looked down at the back of her opposite hand, watching as four faint red marks appeared in the center. Cordelia moved to the girl's side quickly, unsure of what was happening. "Fucking _hell_, Madison," Corey spat, stomping her foot down. Cordelia's shoulders slumped as she stopped, tilting her head as she rolled her eyes.

"Corinna, you can't keep tethering yourself to that girl. It's going to get you _killed_," Cordelia warned. She shook her head, immediately returning to her work.

_"_Yeah, I'm starting to get that," the redhead hissed, talking through her teeth. She shook her hand out, finally able to pull her palm from the table. Flexing her fingers, she massaged her hand gently. She wondered if she should head back inside to check on Madison but, as quickly as she was able to remove her hand from the table, the pain subsided. "I'll remove the tether tonight," she groaned. "The longer she's here the more trouble she's getting into."

"And she'll only continue to get into trouble with her attitude," Cordelia replied. She lit a match at her alchemy table.

"I get it, Delia," Corey groaned. She wiped a hand across her forehead as she looked down at her feet. "Madison just _oozes_ chaos. We don't need to constantly be having these talks about it, really." The sarcasm dripped from her lips as she took a step away from the table, needing to catch a breath of fresh air.

"I'll be back," she mumbled, looking up to notice Cordelia nod as she hummed in response. Corey stepped out of the greenhouse and pulled a cigarette from its home in her pack, a small flame flickering at its end as she brought the black stick to her lips. Before she could enjoy her moment of peace and quiet, she heard a glass shatter from inside the greenhouse behind her.

"Ooh! You dropped your cocktail," Fiona whispered, a sickening grin on her lips. Corey turned around, catching a glimpse of the Supreme sauntering away from the other witch. She watched the two interact through the window, her brow furrowed in confusion as she tried to figure out why Fiona was back in New Orleans in the first place.

"I thought you were in Switzerland," Cordelia turned to look at her mother, frustrated that all her work for the night had gone to waste.

"L.A.," Fiona replied, letting out a slight chuckle. "It's tragic. The glamour's gone." She took a few steps forward, noticing Corey watching from the window. Cordelia looked back at her table in front of her, feeling defeated. "They put a shopping mall on Sunset and Vine."

"I don't have a broom." Cordelia closed her eyes, jumping back into the conversation before Fiona could ramble about Los Angeles for hours.

"That's ironic," the Supreme let out a dry laugh, fiddling with the lighter in her hand.

"Los Angeles?" Corey asked. She leaned her head through the open door of the greenhouse when she noticed Fiona was still watching her. "Then why do you look so jet-lagged?" She tilted her head, a cocky smirk gracing her features. Cordelia pursed her lips, holding in a laugh she knew she shouldn't let out. She quickly kneeled down to clean up the broken glass at her feet, distracting herself for the time being.

"I happen to look wonderful," Fiona groaned. She rolled her eyes, playing with her hair.

"Let me make you something," Cordelia looked up at her mother from her spot on the floor as she spoke. "I've been working on a restorative that I've been experimenting with. This will fix you right up." She leaned over the waste bin, dumping the shards of glass into it.

"Delia, with her potions and powders." Fiona sighed as Cordelia grabbed a beaker full of a dark liquid, pouring it into a small glass. "You know, one of my greatest disappointments in life is that you never fully realized the extent of your power."

"I've done pretty well," the younger witch's bottom lip found its way between her teeth again, smirking to herself as she continued to mix things together.

"You are the only child of the Supreme. You have royal blood running in your veins. You could be ruling the world." Cordelia stood taller as Fiona spoke, immediately stiffening into a defensive form. Corey tossed her cigarette butt into a metal pail just outside the door as she moved back into the greenhouse.

"I like my little kingdom here, thank you," Cordelia retorted, her smile falling from her face as she glared at her mother.

"Yeah, well, your little kingdom is a mess," Fiona took the small beaker from Cordelia, the liquid in it foaming quickly. She took one sniff of the steam that emitted from it before letting out a sound of disgust. She leaned down, dumping it into the silver water bowl that sat on the floor. Ophelia, Corey's small black cat, charged towards the bowl, determined to have whatever it was that Fiona refused to drink.

"_Shit,_ Ophelia, no!" Corey charged after her. She wasn't sure what Cordelia had mixed together but she knew that whatever it was couldn't be safe for the curious critter to consume.

"No! Oh..." Cordelia leaned down. She grabbed the bowl before the cat could get to it. "You bitch. It wouldn't have killed _you_." She handed the bowl to Corey, nodding towards the sink.

"Just put me in a coma for a couple days?" Fiona asked, taking a seat as she reached into her pocket and pulled out her cigarette case.

"Or weeks. Look, why don't you just go away?" Cordelia paused, locking eyes with her mother as she looked up at her with sad eyes. "I don't want you here. How else do you want me to say it?" Corey took this as the right time for her to step away for a moment and moved to the greenhouse sink, rinsing the cat's bowl out thoroughly.

"You're still angry. I can tell," Fiona spoke smugly, pulling the cigarette up to her lips.

"My God, you are the Supreme," Cordelia shook her head, the sarcasm in her voice palpable as Fiona lit her cigarette.

"I was just on this wonderful spiritual retreat with Shirley MacLaine in Sedona. It was all about forgiveness." Corey rolled her eyes, drying the metal bowl as Cordelia and Fiona bickered back and forth.

"You dumped me here," the blonde spat, putting away the herbs that lay scattered around the room.

"You were sent to an elite boarding school. Boo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo." Fiona rolled her eyes, leaning backwards slightly. "You know, I've often thought that my big mistake with you was waiting so long before sending you away."

"Enough," Cordelia stopped, standing tall as she looked at her mother directly. Corey moved to put the bowl back in its place as she held in the groan she so badly wanted to vocalize. She didn't know why she hadn't expected it; there was rarely ever a time that Cordelia and Fiona were in a room together and they _didn't_ get into an argument. "Show yourself out."

"No. I'm not going. I'm staying. I'm here to help you." Corey rolled her eyes as Fiona spoke. The last thing she needed was for the Supreme to be back, pretending that she cared. Cordelia tapped her knuckles against the table in front of her in frustration. "Do you know that not 50 miles from here a young woman was burned at the stake? It's Salem all over again. There is a storm coming. And you are leaving these poor girls under your charge completely unprepared for it."

"Do you think we don't know what's happening?" Corey asked, her brow furrowed as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Cordelia's entire teaching philosophy..."

"Has been an abject failure," Fiona cut her off, talking with her hands. Cordelia tilted her head at her mother as she raised a brow. "You teach them to cower. And to hide in the shadows. Well there are no shadows, not anymore. Do you really think, with Twitter and Facebook, that a witch does anything at all she won't be videotaped and turned into some viral freak show like a dog who says _I love you_?"

Corey scoffed, shaking her head. She knew better than anyone about the fears of witches in the modern age. She had spent every waking moment helping the PR team ensure that the clip of Madison using her telekinesis to drop a PAR can stage light on her director would never see the light of day.

"No, no, no. This is my life. You can't come in here and piss all over it. I will call the council." Cordelia leaned closer to Fiona in an attempt to be more intimidating.

"Do. Call the council," Fiona let out a laugh, looking down at the floor between them. Before opening her mouth again, she quickly looked up at her daughter. "And then you can explain to them why you think it's a bad idea for the Supreme to teach them."

"When are you gonna die and stop ruining my life?" Cordelia looked away, returning to her previous task. Fiona swallowed hard, looking down at her feet. There was something she wasn't telling the girls, Corey was sure of it. She kept her comments to herself, not needing to be dragged in the middle of a long-running family feud. The Supreme took a deep breath, collecting herself, before she opened her mouth once more.

"I'm here. I'm staying." She licked her lips, holding back her tears. "So why don't we make the best of it?"


	3. three

COREY HAD FELT A PIT IN HER STOMACH EARLIER in the night, a sign that something hadn't been entirely okay with one of the members of their coven. She only grew more anxious the longer Zoe and Madison had stayed out. She hoped that the two girls would stick together, but she knew how compelling Madison could be when she wanted something.

She sat on the front porch step, a lit black cigarette in hand, when the girls finally wandered home on foot. Madison held her stilettos in one hand as she wiped her face with the other. She stumbled through the iron wrought gate with a sniffle, her eyes locked on her feet as they had been the entire walk home.

Corey's eyes scanned the actress, taking in every detail. The blonde was disheveled, her makeup having run down her face with her hair tossed around haphazardly and knotted in places Corey knew the blonde could never purposely reach on her own. Madison looked up at the academy with a sad sigh, not expecting anyone to be waiting for them to come home. When the actress's gold eyes met the redhead's green ones, she froze.

"Did you—" Madison turned to the brunette who trailed behind her. She paused slightly as Corey jumped up from her seat. Madison's angry brows targeted Zoe, the brunette's bottom lip quivering as she turned her attention to the redhead.

"N-no, I—" Zoe threw her hands up in surrender, her eyes darting quickly between the two girls. Corey furrowed her brow, her head tilted slightly as she tried to understand what was going on. When it hit her, the feeling of her stomach dropping returned. She clenched her jaw slightly, pursing her lips as she looked over to Zoe.

"Go inside," Corey said simply, her tone commanding as she nodded towards the door behind her. The newest witch nodded feverishly before quickly moving inside. Madison moved to follow her, but stopped when Corey stepped into her path. "Maddie, wait," Corey pleaded, her eyes soft as she looked down at the blonde.

"What," Madison whined. Her bottom lip instinctively moved between her teeth in an attempt to keep herself from crying. Corey sighed, reaching out to tuck a stray hair out of Madison's face.

"I may have removed the tether after what happened with Queenie at dinner," Madison massaged her hand, the memory of the sharp pain— caused by a fork piercing through tissue transferred from the _human voodoo doll_ to the actress— now dull and brief compared to what it had been previously. "But that doesn't mean that I don't know that _something_ happened to you tonight."

The pads of Corey's fingers brushed against Madison's jawline as the blonde closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. She felt a light spark, something she could never get used to, though she tried to ignore it; the way the blonde's brows raised slightly told her the other girl had felt the same.

"Whatever it was, we don't need to talk about it, but you don't have to come home pretending like everything is fine." She wrapped her other arm around Madison's waist and pulled her into her chest as she watched a single tear begin to roll down the blonde's cheek. Almost instinctively, the actress let herself unravel in Corey's arms.

Her body shook as her muffled sobs rang out into the redhead's chest. Corey stood there, her arms wrapped protectively around Madison— one arm around the girl's waist while her other hand found its way tangled in her already knotted hair— not saying another word. She fought the slight haze that took over her vision, what little the blonde could remember threatening to take over the musician's psyche.

While she could fight off the visuals, she felt the phantom grip on her wrists; the pulsing pain in her abdomen; the yanking of hair against her scalp; the tickle of a scream resting in the back of her throat; the weakness in her knees threatening to knock her against the ground and take the other girl down with her. She took in a deep breath, squeezing her eyes shut as she forced the feeling away.

Silently, Corey guided Madison up to her room. The last thing she wanted was for the blonde to have to spend the night in her shared room with Zoe after whatever she had been through at the frat party. When Madison's tears had finally subsided, the two laid together in a mess of limbs. Corey held the smaller girl close to her chest, their legs tangled together over the blankets as she played with the blonde's hair gently.

"Thank you," Madison mumbled, looking up at the redhead who had been lazily scratching her scalp, unintentionally lulling herself to sleep.

"Hmm?" Corey hummed, having heard the other girl's voice as she began to slip in and out of consciousness, yet not entirely sure of what she had said.

"I said thank you, Cor," Madison spoke slightly louder, pressing her nose against the girl's collarbone as she nuzzled into her chest. Corey tilted her head forward, placing a sleepy kiss to the crown of Madison's head. Again came a spark, though dull compared to the one previously.

"Mmhmm," Corey hummed in response, inhaling the smell of menthol cigarettes and Chanel Nº5, which she had come to learn over time to be Madison's signature scent. "Just don't let the other girls see you being such a softy," the redhead joked, earning a pinch from pointed nails against her hip. She inhaled sharply, though the smirk on her lips only grew larger.

_"Ass,"_ Madison muttered as she rolled her eyes, not moving her head from its spot against Corey's chest. The redhead tried to hold in a laugh but Madison could tell that she was smiling, her lips still resting against the top of the blonde's head.

* * *

Corey tugged the black lace dress up her hips, slipping her arms into the see-through material of the dresses long sleeves. "Can you help me with this zipper?" She asked, reaching behind her back awkwardly as she turned her head to catch Madison staring at her.

"Going somewhere today?" The blonde asked, swallowing hard as she made her way over to Corey. Her eyes locked on the bare patch of skin that dared to show itself after the night Madison had endured. She reached out, their fingers brushing against each other as she took the zipper in her hand. She shrugged, swallowing hard as she tried to clear the increasingly dry patch that rippled through her mouth. She looked up to see Corey watching her with a quizzical expression.

"You just don't usually dress up unless you have somewhere to be, that's all," she explained herself, one hand resting firmly against the small of Corey's back as she tugged the zipper upward.

"I have a feeling we all will," the redhead sighed, turning to face the other girl once the zipper was snuggly in place. Madison placed a hand against Corey's collarbone as the girl looked her up and down briefly. The blonde wore denim shorts, a black graphic tee and a green flannel with the sleeves rolled up. "Wear something black?" She formed her sentence as a question to make it seem like she truly had a choice in the matter.

"Someone's demanding today," Madison scoffed, the sound of a news broadcast echoing up the stairs grabbing her attention. "Besides, I'm already dressed." Her hands fell to her sides as she stepped away from the taller girl, anger quickly taking over her features.

_"The Louisiana campus is still in shock over the tragic bus crash last night. Nine members of the fraternity Kappa Lambda Gamma were on board."_

Corey froze, the smirk that previously held its place on her features faltering slightly. She watched as Madison stormed out of the room in search of the TV with the broadcast on it.

"It was just a request, Mads," she sighed, knowing the girl would have to change before they left the academy anyway. She grabbed her hooded shawl as she followed Madison out the door of her bedroom, watching as the girl moved more frantically the further she traveled down the stairs.

_"Seven of the boys died on the scene. Two were rushed to Troost Medical Center where they remain in critical condition."_

The closer they moved to the breakfast nook off the corner of the kitchen, the louder the broadcast became. Although she wasn't sure of what had happened the night before, she could now easily tell that Madison and Zoe had something to do with the bus crash— as if it hadn't been somewhat obvious before. Corey secured her shawl over her shoulders as she moved, looking down at the fabric in her hands briefly as she tied it in place.

_"Officials will not confirm the identities of the deceased."_

The TV clicked as Madison rolled her jaw, flipping the television off as she walked past it. Corey slowed her pace as she neared the rest of the girls, her eyes not leaving Madison as she watched the blonde's shoulders relax slightly.

"Hey, I was watching that!" Nan called out in frustration as she lifted her mug off the small table in front of her. Corey walked past them, quickly making herself a cup of coffee.

"Why? It's yesterday's news." Madison took a peach from Spalding's hand and it took every fiber of Corey's being to not instinctively wrap a protective arm around the other girl. She wasn't sure what it was, but something about the butler was off-putting to her.

"They got any Greek yogurt?" Madison asked. Her request was all that it took to send Spalding away. Corey brought her mug to her lips, leaning against the cabinet behind her as Zoe stepped in front of Madison. She leaned close so that she could whisper, hoping that only Corey and Madison could hear her.

"We have to tell somebody what happened." Madison rolled her eyes, looking over to Corey as she adjusted her weight anxiously. The redhead looked at Madison, her eyes catching the blonde's pleading gaze with her lip slightly trembling. She stepped forward, a protective hand landing on the small of the other girl's back. She swallowed her mouthful of her coffee before leaning towards Zoe.

"You _need_ to drop it, Zoe," Corey's brows turned angrily as she looked at the younger girl. "What's done is done." Madison leaned into her touch slightly, though she was weary of the company that surrounded them.

"The one I met, Kyle," Zoe paused. She looked from Corey to Madison in a pleading manner. "Madison, he tried to stop it." The blonde rolled her jaw, returning her attention to the brunette in front of her. She took a cautious step, silently telling Zoe to drop the conversation. "Okay? And he was _on_ that bus." Nan looked up from her mug, hearing the clicking of heels enter the room.

"What are we talking about?" Fiona called out as she entered the kitchen.

"Great," Corey muttered. Her defensive stance faltered as she turned to look at the Supreme.

"The college boys?" Fiona asked. She entered the kitchen to catch a glimpse Corey's hand as it fell from Madison's back. The redhead quickly placed both hands on her mug, yanking it towards her lips in order to keep herself from saying anything else. "Taken in the prime of their lives. Such a tragedy. Almost makes you want to cry, doesn't it?" Fiona stood at the short kitchen island with the others, looking down at the fruit gathered in front of her.

"But, then, the world's not gonna miss a bunch of assholes in Ed Hardy t-shirts." Madison looked the woman up and down cautiously. Fiona gathered some fruit in her hand, picking berries at random to place into the small bowl that rest her palm.

"Who are you?" Madison leaned away from Corey, angrily eyeing Fiona as she moved closer.

"You know, I've got to hand it to you," Fiona sighed, placing the tiny bowl of berries down. "A bus flip? That's not easy." She looked up at Madison, standing slightly taller so that she was towering over the blonde. "But you were a sloppy, little witch bitch." She pointed her cigarette at the girl, glaring at her.

"Fiona," Corey warned, knowing exactly where this conversation would lead. She placed her coffee mug on the counter behind her, her angry gaze not leaving the older woman.

"Go to hell, you stupid hag," Madison spat, stomping her foot slightly. She moved to walk out of the room, still upset over the situation at hand. Fiona hadn't known what had happened or why Madison had flipped the bus in the first place. The blonde couldn't understand the hostility coming from a woman she had never met before, or how she had known that she'd done it in the first place. With the flick of her wrist, Fiona sent Madison flying across the room, her small body colliding with the wall in the dining room.

Corey felt the sympathetic numbness roll across her shoulders and down her back as Madison hit the wall. She clenched her jaw at the crunch of the impact as her body twitched involuntarily. The feeling of pins and needles seemed to echo through her nerves, a continuous reverb of Madison's bones aching from her collision with the wall.

The Supreme's eyes remained locked on Corey's face as the redhead lifted a hand in frustration. The most central point in the redhead's palm enveloped in flames that flickered upwards. Fiona smirked, making a mental note of both Corey's weakness for the blonde and her bone-chilling control over her powers.

She had never seen another witch capable of physically holding a ball of fire before but, with Stevie Nicks as her mother, Fiona knew anything was truly possible. The Supreme brought her cigarette to her lips for a moment, a slight smirk crossing her lips.

"Oh, _shit,_" Queenie muttered, her brows raised as she tiled her head. "I didn't know Corey could do _that_." Madison scoffed, attempting to pick herself back up off the floor while Fiona still had her pinned telekinetically.

"Her nickname isn't Fireball _solely_ because of the whisky," the blonde groaned, managing to slightly sit herself up with an elbow underneath her to support her weight. Corey shook her head, dropping her hand to her side as she finally broke eye contact with the Supreme, moving to Madison's side to help her stand back up.

"I thought that was just because her hair is red," Nan mumbled, shrugging as she looked down at her mug in her hands. "And because she's angry, like, all the time." Corey fought the scoff that threatened to leave her lips at the youngest witch's comment. _I'm not always angry,_ she thought, gritting her teeth as she held Madison up. She made sure that the other girl could stand on her own after being thrown halfway across the room.

"Now, I've read all of your files," Fiona sighed, putting her cigarette out on a dinner plate in front of her.

"You broke into my office?" Corey scoffed, her eyebrows inching up her forehead as she clenched her fist, keeping the flames of her anger at bay. She felt the blonde's panicked grip grasping at the small of her back at the news. If Fiona had read their files, she already knew that the musician and the actress were seeing each other.

"Yes," Fiona groaned, rolling her eyes. "While you were busy playing house with your little toy last night," she quipped, watching as the rage flashed across Madison's face quickly. "Or are you _her_ little toy?" Corey rolled her eyes. Fiona cleared her throat before continuing.

"Anyway, you're never going to become great women of our clan sitting around here at _Hogwarts_ under the confused instruction of Corinna _Nicks_ and my daughter." She moved to walk out of the kitchen as she spoke, her gaze still locked on Corey and Madison.

"Oh, _bite me_, Fiona." Corey groaned. She wrapped an arm around Madison's waist to keep her from lunging after the older woman. The blonde instinctively pressed herself into the redhead's side, her arm snaking behind Corey's shoulder so that her hand could latch itself in the crook of her neck. The redhead flinched slightly as Madison's sharp nails dug into the base of her neck unintentionally.

"We're going on a field trip, ladies." Fiona looked around the room, scrunching her nose at the attire of the younger witches. "Jesus, go change your clothes. Wear something," Fiona paused for emphasis as she walked out the door, "_black_."

"What the _fuck_ was that about?" Madison asked, using her free hand to brush the dust off her clothes as she watched Fiona walk off.

"Who knows," Corey groaned, shaking her head. She made a mental note to call her mother for any information the white witch may have on Fiona's sudden reappearance.


	4. four

THE COVEN MARCHED THROUGH THE STREETS OF New Orleans, moving to the beat of their own drum in a single file line. At the head was Fiona Goode, followed in order by Corey, Madison, Nan, Zoe and Queenie. The first three witches walked the streets in heels as the three that followed them donned flats— or, in Queenie's case, sneakers.

Madison's long sleeved dress flowed down towards her ankles. Corey wondered what the girl was hiding under the fabric. She felt as though it was one of the more modest dresses her girlfriend had chosen to wear, which peaked her interest. On most occasions, the blonde would take any chance to show some extra skin and run with it.

"Where are we going," Madison whined, tilting her head back slowly as she played along with the forced game of 'follow the leader'. "It's too hot, my freaking vagina is sweating." Corey scoffed, shaking her head as she followed closely behind Fiona, her hooded shawl in place over her head. Each of the younger witches walked with a black hat placed snuggly on the tops of their heads, initiated by Madison trying to outdo Corey's signature shawl.

"To _Popp Fountain_. A kind of holy place for our order. Back in the 1970s, Mary Oneida Toups led an alternative coven down here." Fiona dodged a pair of meat deliverymen as she led the group across the street, triumphantly holding her black umbrella over her head.

"She and her sister witches would gather there, proudly and publicly, very much in the spirit of the times. But it was damaged during Katrina and the authorities used this as an excuse to declare this sacred space a safety hazard. It's been closed off ever since." She held herself in a regal manner as she spoke over the noises of the bustling street around them, taking it upon herself to teach the newer additions of the coven about their history.

"Wait, haven't we—" Madison placed a hand on Corey's shoulder to get the redhead's attention.

"Um," she started, eyes wide. Fiona turned to look at her with a raised brow as Corey let out a chuckle. "Ye—yeah," she cleared her throat, nodding. When Madison had first relocated from Los Angeles, Corey had made it her mission to take the blonde to her favorite abandoned or hidden locations.

It very quickly turned into 'how many abandoned locations can we defile before we get caught by a park cop' with _Jazzland_, _Booker T. Washington High School_, the original _Holy Cross School_, and the _London Lodge Motel_ among the list. Though, when the point of their adventures changed, Corey had kept the _truly_ haunted or sacred locations off of their hit-list. While they had visited _Popp Fountain_ together, it hadn't been for anything more than a wholesome lunch date.

"I don't understand, what are we supposed to do if we can't get in?" Zoe leaned forward, her brow furrowed in confusion.

"Tear the wall down. When witches don't fight, we burn." Fiona called back towards Zoe, keeping her gaze forward through her large designer sunglasses.

"Ugh, this is seriously the worst field trip ever," Madison groaned. Her hand slid from Corey's shoulder to return to her side, their fingers brushing against each other with a faint spark in the process.

"Each one of you has a unique gift, but that's not nearly enough to be a real witch." Fiona spoke in a condescending tone, causing the redhead behind her to roll her eyes.

"And you're a real witch?" Madison scoffed. She kept her gaze locked ahead of her as the brim of her hat bounced slightly with each step.

"She's the Supreme," Nan and Corey spoke in unison, the younger of the two gazing off into the distance as an unfamiliar building caught her attention. To anyone else, it would just be another old building along Royal Street, but something— or someone— was calling out to Nan. The girl stopped, her attention turning to the large grey building on the corner of Royal and Governor Nicholls. Madison and Zoe turned to look at the girl with furrowed brows as Queenie walked around her.

"You know, that one?" Fiona laughed. She pointed a finger to the girl who stood with her feet glued against the sidewalk as the rest of the group marched on. "She's smarter than all of you put together."

Madison tugged on the back of Corey's shawl, grabbing the redhead's attention. She turned around, a single brow raised at the blonde, until she watched as Nan made her way across the street, abandoning the tour that Fiona had sprung on the group at the last minute.

"Fiona," Corey groaned. She turned back around to face the Supreme. "Care to do a headcount?" She asked. She crossed her arms over her chest in frustration. Fiona rolled her eyes, waving the redhead off and continuing on her merry way.

"Everyone is here, I don't understand why you're—" The redhead cut her off again, this time planting her feet against the sidewalk. Madison bumped into her, not entirely paying attention as she had kept her eyes on the straggler.

"_Shit,_" she muttered. She scrunched her nose slightly as she stumbled backward, caught off guard.

"We've got a straggler," Corey sighed. She tapped a finger against the inside corner of her arm, her brows arched at the older woman in front of her. Finally, Fiona stopped walking and turned around. Her lips moved as she silently counted the witches in line. Corey was right, Nan had wandered off.

The door to the LaLaurie mansion swung open and Corey took it upon herself to lead the group back to the building that the young witch had gone into. Fiona fell to the back of the line, the confusion evident on her face for a beat before she hurried forward.

"The New Orleans Preservation Foundation is proud to present the haunted home tour of the notorious Madame LaLaurie. This very house, the center of New Orleans high society, was also a place of abject horror." The tour guide's voice echoed through the first floor and out onto the street. Fiona quickly took the lead of the group once more, closing her umbrella as she pushed the door to the building open.

Corey removed her hood from her head as she followed the Supreme inside. As they crossed the threshold, Queenie was the only one who let their hat remain on top of their heads. Corey peered into every room as the group looked for the young witch. Finally, they found Nan standing with the rest of the tour group, staring up at a portrait of Delphine LaLaurie.

"You want me to get her?" Zoe asked. She placed a hand on Corey's arm to get her attention. Madison's fiery gaze immediately locked onto Zoe's hand as she rolled her jaw in frustration.

"No, it's okay," Corey sighed. She watched Nan from afar as the girl continued to stare at the painting directly behind the tour guide. Fiona took a step into the room, looking around at the decor and furnishings. Zoe returned her hand to her side with a nod and Madison visibly relaxed.

"Oh, excuse me. You can't just barge in on the tour without purchasing a ticket." The tour guide stopped Fiona in her tracks, but the Supreme just turned to her with a smile. They locked eyes and the guide's shoulders slumped slightly, as if hypnotized.

"You're giving us a tour for free," Fiona spoke with poise and determination. It was as if she had done this thousands of times before. Corey assumed that she had, not wanting to know what the circumstances were for the other situations.

"For free. Of course," the tour guide nodded, immediately returning her attention to the group in front of her as if nothing had happened. The witches entered the room behind Fiona, and Madison brushed her shoulder against Corey's slightly. Again, the redhead noted that something was off; Madison wasn't one for frequent public displays of affection unless they were within the confines of their own property.

The paparazzi followed her like a hawk, though there were less now than in the past. They had already attempted to out the girls once, having bought information off Corey's old drummer thinking they could provide it to the public. Their PR Manager, Trinity Pine, was able to immediately deny the allegations, but it grew increasingly difficult to bury the evidence as the years progressed.

Gossip publications would use any information they managed to gather to publicly out the couple before anyone else could. After intoxicated concert venues and 'window peeping perverts'— as Madison so endearingly called the photographers that consistently surrounded their apartment— Trinity was growing tired of burying their outings.

The tour guide directed the group out into the hallway as she continued talking. They followed her up the stairway, the chatter quieting as they moved further through the old home. Nan, the straggler that she was, stayed behind. She remained mesmerized by the portrait of the lady of the house, her head tilted up with her furrowed brow etching confused creases through her forehead.

Fiona led the coven into the next tour room. Corey took a slow step into the room. She watched as the crowd began to press into each other, the standing room growing sparse. She swallowed hard and searched for Fiona, finding her standing a few feet ahead with her gaze lingering on the desk of the bedroom.

"Madame LaLaurie was infamous for her vanity. She fought the rigors of age with a sacrament of expensive creams from Europe, and something else far more exotic." The tour guide stood with her hands folded in front of her, commanding the attention from the room as it grew silent amongst the crowd. Corey's head snapped to her right, feeling a hand snake across the lace of the dress that sat snuggly against her lower back. Her shoulders relaxed as she realized who the hand belonged to.

"Hey, how come you never brought me here?" Madison asked in a whisper. A playful smirk peeked across her lips as she leaned into Corey's personal bubble. The redhead sighed, wrapping an arm around the girl's torso awkwardly. They'd been caught holding hands and walking closely for so long that the behavior didn't faze Corey as much as it should have.

"Because, unlike the places we _did_ visit, this one's actually haunted." Corey's fingers brushed against the sleeve of Madison's dress as the blonde pressed herself against her side. She refused to pry her hand from her girlfriend's back.

Madison was uncomfortable. It was palpable; the thick musky air made it harder to breathe in the already awkwardly structured building. The large group that surrounded them, packed like sardines from wall to wall, only made the actress feel more unwelcome and anxious in the old home.

"Pfft, yeah, sure," Madison scoffed as she shook her head, though her playful smirk remained on her lips. Her eyes rolled as she looked up at the other girl. For a moment, the people that surrounded them disappeared. Her bottom lip twitched slightly as she swallowed hard, the gulp in the back of her throat almost audible.

Corey's tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip. The slight huff that accompanied her laugh barely made a sound as her shoulders bounced slightly. They stared at each other for a moment too long, their smiles mirrored between them as a quiet shutter-click of a camera chirped out of their line of sight. The commanding voice from the corner grabbed their attention once again.

"The secret ingredient to the Madame's beauty ritual was a poultice made from human pancreas." The tour guide spoke matter-of-factly as she pushed open a secret door in the corner of the room, leading the group up another set of stairs. "This is the infamous chamber of horrors. No flash photography, please. The attic where Madame LaLaurie inflicted heinous torture upon her slaves. And where she ultimately met her own demise."

The air was thicker in the attic, somehow making it even more difficult to breathe. The smirk fell from Madison's lips as she finally understood that Corey was telling the truth. The girls became weary of their surroundings, the vibration in their bones growing stronger with each step they took through the attic-turned-torture chamber. Madison slowly ran her fingertips across her throat before tugging at the shoulder of her dress.

Corey's eyes locked onto the Supreme as Fiona walked around the room with her head held high. She let her hand fall from the blonde's side and took a step forward, an attempt break apart from Madison now that they had entered a space that opened up to a larger walkway. Instead of letting her create a gap between them, the blonde's grasped Corey's forearm in a hurry. The fabric of the hat in her hand folded with a quiet crunch, a crumpled mess of black satin crushed against black tulle.

"Why does it feel... weird up here?" Madison whispered. The wide brim of her hat grazed against Corey's face slightly as her hand traveled further up the redhead's arm. Corey could feel the sets of eyes boring into the back of her head, the excited whispers from a group of teenage girls behind grabbing her attention. She turned, her eyes landing on the culprits. The three stood with their faces buried in their phone screens, cameras pointed towards the actress and the musician.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," Corey whispered through her teeth. A smile quickly took over her face, though she was less than happy about the situation. She raised her brows at the girls who hadn't yet noticed that they'd been caught. She felt the blonde's grip tighten against her arm as she let her other hand fall to rest near her side.

"What is i—" When Madison's head turned in the direction that Corey had been looking in, the defeat washed over her face. She looked down at the floorboards, her tongue rolling over her front teeth as she tried to remain calm. She took in a shaky breath, letting go of the redhead almost immediately.

Zoe made her way towards them, not looking at either witch as they spoke; a poor attempt at being inconspicuous. She broke the musician away from Madison for a moment, looking back to catch a panicked expression wash across the girl's face as the redhead was pulled aside. She didn't want to be left alone in a room full of strangers when people had already been caught photographing them together.

"Will you cover for me? I need to head to Troost Medical Center on the way home." Zoe spoke in a low whisper, her gaze landing on Madison who had been watching her like a hawk. The girl was visibly anxious. It pained Zoe to see Madison so scared to be alone.

Madison, the girl who only the day before had Zoe pinned to a table as she loudly chanted nothings at her. Madison, who dropped a spot light on her director in frustration for telling her to hit her mark. Zoe swallowed hard, her thumb running against her jawline as she pulled her hand down the side of her neck.

"I need to know _who_ survived that crash." The brunette covered her tracks quickly, not needing Corey to know that she just wanted to find out whether or not Kyle had survived. She looked up at the redhead at the same moment the girl looked back at her. Corey looked between the brunette and the group of teenagers with a furrowed brow, trying to understand Zoe's words while also monitoring the _fangirls_ in the corner of the room.

"Don't go sticking your nose where it doesn't belong," Corey groaned. The last thing she needed was for the newest witch to get caught meddling in the boiling pot of disaster that she and Madison had already created together.

"Look, if you knew what had happened last night, you would want to know, too." Zoe pleaded, her eyes begging the older girl to cave and let her wander off on her own. Corey swallowed hard. From what she had felt, whatever happened to Madison was much bigger than she had allowed herself to feel. She pursed her lips, nodding as she tried to calculate the possible outcomes of Zoe's solo mission.

"Fine, just... don't get caught," Corey sighed, raising her brows with a slight shake of her head. She could feel Madison's stare burning into the side of her face, causing her to look over at the blonde. Narrowed eyes quickly looked away as Madison rolled her jaw with a twitch of her nose.

Corey considered approaching the group of teens and offering to take a photo with them but decided against it. The fear of alerting the rest of the room of the _celebrities_ hiding amongst them kept her from interacting with the girls. Instead, She returned to the blonde's side as the tour guide continued her droning monologue. She wrapped an arm around Madison's shoulder, holding the girl against her side with a sigh as they waited for the coven to regroup.

Her eyes drifted to the tour guide who stood with her hands folded in front of her, the ascot seemingly too tight around her neck. Corey wasn't sure what she would have done if it weren't for her music career, or her mother's career, but she knew that she would never want to be a tour guide; not even if the world was ending and it was her only choice.

* * *

"It's the second door on the left down the hall. Make sure you stack them vertically." Fiona called up the stairs, pointing up the left side of the staircase from the main floor of Miss Robichaux's Academy. The men that held her bags stood on the landing above her, slightly confused by the directions they were being given.

"I'm responsible for those girls. What if something had happened?" Cordelia looked from Corey to Fiona as she stood on the right side of the staircase on the first floor, her arms crossed over her chest. She was more angry with her mother than she was with her friend, knowing that Corey had only tagged along to make sure that the girls remained safe.

"Well, nothing did." Fiona refused to look at her daughter, choosing instead to watch the men as they walked away with a smile on her face. Corey rolled her eyes, wanting desperately to just kick off her shoes and lay in bed with a good book.

"Where's Zoe Benson?" Cordelia demanded, her head tilted slightly as her mother finally turned around.

"How would I know that?" Fiona threw her arms outward in frustration, her brows arching upward in a challenging manner. She shifted slightly, swallowing hard as the redhead next to her daughter opened her mouth.

"I've been in contact with her, Dee. She's fine," Corey looked down at Cordelia, slowly backing up the steps. She thought about mentioning that the Supreme had also almost lost Nan but opted to not do so. She hadn't seen where Madison had dashed off to when they returned home; a large part of her wanted to question the blonde's out of character behavior from earlier. A horn blared outside which caused Corey to jump slightly.

"Oh, there's my taxi. Here, darling," Fiona took a few steps forward, digging into the small purse in her hands. "Make sure you tip them generously when they're done." She handed Cordelia a small wad of cash before waving condescendingly as she turned away.

"Where are you going?" Cordelia dropped her arms to her sides, taking a step forward with a quizzical expression etched into her features. Corey took this moment to slowly back up the steps until she reached the landing in which the staircase split in two different directions.

"Out. Don't wait up," Fiona called out as she continued to make her way towards the front door.

"I have half a mind to enchant the locks after you leave." Cordelia took the hem of her sweater in her hands, tapping her fingertips together anxiously. She turned backward at the sound of Corey's voice.

"You act as if that would keep her out," the redhead scoffed, her hand resting against the railing as she shifted her weight slightly, needing to move her feet to keep her ankles from bothering her.

"Don't make me drop a house on you." Fiona called back, pulling the front door open without even looking back at the two girls near the staircase. Corey rolled her eyes as she made her way up the obnoxiously large staircase. She was ready to make her way into her bedroom and kick off her boots when she heard muffled sobbing coming from the bathroom attached to her room.

The sobbing was quickly replaced by sniffling as the clicking of Corey's heels drew closer to the door. The hinges creaked as she pushed the door open, taking a step inside. The room fell silent, the only sound being the water from the shower head hitting the porcelain tub. Unable to see Madison's shadow through the shower curtain, she called out to the other girl.

"Maddie?" She closed the door behind her as she moved inside, her heels echoing against the tile. With no response she moved across the room slightly faster, ditching her heels as she walked towards the claw foot tub in the center of the room. Corey pulled the curtain back to find Madison curled up in a ball on the floor of the bathtub, her neck craned upwards to see the redhead's face.

"I'm okay," the blonde choked out, her bottom lip quivering as the tears threatened to fall again at any moment. Corey knelt down next to the tub, her knees bumping against the porcelain as she dropped a hand against Madison's side.

"You spooked me," Corey spoke softly, gently dragging her fingers across Madison's bare skin as she smirked at the blonde. She felt the goosebumps that rippled across the fragile girl's body but froze, however, when the blonde winced at her touch. Her eyes moved quickly to the spot on Madison's arm that had turned black and blue overnight. Corey's smile fell, noticing that the same hand shape bruising pattern scattered the rest of her skin, accompanied by the large bruise across her shoulder blades from having forcefully collided with the wall that morning.

"It's nothing," Madison spoke quickly, moving away from Corey's hand as she sat up straight. "I'm fine, Corinna." The redhead's concerned gaze moved from taking in the blonde's injuries to scanning her face. The tears threatened to fall with every breath Madison took, her voice hoarse from sobbing. Before she could object, Corey climbed into the bathtub with her, too concerned with Madison's wellbeing to remove her dress.

"Maddie, what happened?" Corey gasped, wrapping her arms around the other girl and pulling her into her chest. She used one hand to smooth Madison's wet hair while the other held her small frame tightly against her own body.

Corey couldn't block out the imagery as it took over her, both girls too emotional to fight their powers. What took over her vision was fuzzy and hard to make out the details of. The fragments of what Madison had started to remember were short and fast paced.

_Tall-dark-and-handsome lights her cigarette; Madison's voice echoes, "slaves get nothing."_

_The blonde shambles through a red-lit hallway, struggling to maintain her balance after a second drink._

_Stumbling forward, someone catches her before she can hit the floor._

_She pushes back, trying to get away, but they guide her further down the hallway._

_The faces above her change, meld into one; she cries out in protest but their grips tighten._

_The next face is Zoe's, the only one she remembers every detail of, concern and panic written all over her features._

_Madison stomps after the tour bus; she raises one hand and— with the flick of her wrist— sends it flying._

"I don't remember," Madison's lip trembled as she spoke, pressing her head against Corey's chest harshly before she started to cry again. She shook her head, clinging to the other girl as she buried her face into her red curls.

The water from the shower head continued to batter down against them and Corey couldn't help but hold her tighter, pressing her cheek against the top of Madison's head. She clenched her jaw, trying to control her breathing for the sake of the girl in her arms.

"Whoever did this to you is going to pay for it," the anger seeped through Corey's voice as she spoke through her teeth. Madison grabbed a handful of fabric from Corey's dress in her hand, using it to pull herself as close to the other girl as she physically could.

"If they haven't already," she added. She hoped that whoever had hurt Madison had been one of the lucky souls to have died in the bus flip. Otherwise, Corey wouldn't be holding back.


	5. five

COREY SAT ON THE FLOOR AT THE FOOT OF HER BED, the metal ornaments on the wooden trunk cold against her back through the loose fabric of her tank top. She held her phone up to her ear, a shaky breath leaving her lips as the trill of the other line rang out into the otherwise quiet room, the only other sound being Madison's shallow sleeping breath. She sighed, looking up at the ceiling for a moment to collect her thoughts. Madison knew more about her assault than she had let on; that much was obvious from what Corey was able to unintentionally gather over the previous nights she had spent with the other girl.

The phone pressed up against her cheek continued to ring and she silently hoped her mother hadn't fallen asleep or that her math was off on the time difference between Santa Monica and New Orleans. Just as she was about to check the time, the line on the other end clicked and Stevie's slightly raspy yet soothing voice danced through the receiver. Corey's shoulders relaxed, the tension she didn't realize she had been holding in immediately leaving at the sound of her mother's familiar voice.

"Let me guess," Corey could hear the smile in her mother's voice, the light chuckle that left Stevie's lips causing a smile to crack over the redhead's lips as well. "Can't sleep? There's no other reason why you'd be giving me a call at two in the morning." Madison groaned softly as she adjusted her sleeping position and Corey stifled the laugh that tried to leave her lips. She cleared her throat as quietly as she could and swallowed hard before she let out a whisper.

"You know me too well," she shifted downward until the back of her head was resting against the lid of the ornate trunk behind her. She took in a breath, a slight hesitation in the middle of her inhale— the only sign that she was on the verge of tears. "Maddie's been asleep for hours, but something's been on my mind that I can't seem to wrap my head around."

The redhead wouldn't tell her mother what happened with Madison; it wasn't her place to do so, nor was it something that she should have known in the first place. Instead, she played with the hem on the leg of her silk shorts, her bottom lip slipping between her teeth anxiously. She chewed at her lip, attempting to level her wavering breath.

Corey's mind continued to wander, focusing on what Madison had gone through. She blamed herself for the position that her girlfriend had ended up in. She thought that if she had just gone to the party with Madison that things would be completely different, and they would have been. Madison could be naïve and quick to trust others.

Corey was always the one to have to redirect the other girl, making sure she was safe and taken care of. However, on that specific night, that wasn't her job; Zoe was supposed to be the one to take care of her. That night, her job was to help Cordelia, and even that had been interrupted when Fiona returned to the Academy with no notice.

"Well then let me hear it, Little Bird," Stevie's concern seeped into her voice, though she wouldn't ask questions. Corey cleared her throat as quietly as she could, the last thing she wanted being to wake Madison up after the exhausting few days she'd had. Swallowing hard, she spoke again.

"Fiona's back," she sighed, her eyes squeezing shut as she took a moment to gather her thoughts. "She looks like shit," Stevie let out a light chuckle as Corey tried to hold in her laugh. "Delia threatened to call the council but there are no grounds for Fiona to be removed, she hasn't done anything... _yet_." Both witches knew that the Supreme would do anything to remain in power and, from the way the woman had looked recently, Corey was sure that the time for a new Supreme to rise was vastly approaching.

"She broke into my office last night and read through all of our files." Corey finally got to her point. Stevie held her breath for a moment. "She knows about me and Madison. About our powers and our _connection_." The redhead could hear her mother groan on the other end of the line, the audible frustration from her _friend's_ behavior causing the girl to let out a full-fledged laugh. "Is there a specific reason she's sticking her nose where she shouldn't be?" This time, it was Stevie's turn to laugh.

"Corinna, I think you can put two and two together here, dear." Madison stirred in the bed behind her, mumbling something incoherent as she attempted to get more comfortable. "You're smarter than you give yourself credit for." Stevie swallowed hard as she prepared to continue, gathering her thoughts for a moment; she knew this day would come. She had hoped that it would be when the girls had more time to understand their powers and learn from one another, not when they all refused to properly educate themselves on their heritage and the powers they held as a group.

"Self-preservation is the most primal instinct of the human psyche. Fiona will do anything to survive, and that includes cutting down a blossoming witch like yourself." Corey swallowed hard as her mother's voice seeped through the phone. "You can't let her get to you. The moment she finds out that any one of you have gained control over your powers, she'll find a way to snuff out your light. It's how she rose to power in the first place." It was time; the next Supreme was beginning to show signs of their power and Fiona wouldn't be able to know who the next witch to take the throne would be. Corey nodded silently, her breath wavering for a moment as she tried to figure out the words to say.

"What do you suggest then?" She pulled her knees into her chest as she exhaled slowly through her nose, her jaw rolling to the side as she pursed her lips. "How can I guarantee that the girls will be safe?" She listened to the covers shuffle behind her, the blonde's change in her breathing a signal to the redhead that she had woke up. The fabric of the sheets crinkled as Madison crawled across the length of the bed, her hand dropping down to caress the side of Corey's face. The redhead reached up, her hand gently brushing against the blonde's to show the other girl she was aware of her presence.

"Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, Little Bird. It's the only thing that keeps us alive, especially with Fiona looming around every corner." The trunk at the edge of the bed creaked as Madison climbed on top of it, her arms draping over Corey's shoulders as the concern etched into her face could be seen more clearly. Her lips pressed against the taller girl's forehead as she leaned back into the smaller witch, a slight sad smile slowly creeping across her lips.

"Thanks, mom," she sighed, her free hand rubbing small circles into Madison's forearm as she inhaled the other girl's scent. The concern left Madison's face as she realized who was on the other end of the phone call. She understood how difficult it was for Corey to get the chance to talk to her mother, between the time difference and finding enough time in the day to step aside from her tasks and be alone for a moment. She turned her head, resting her cheek against the top of the other girl's copper locks.

"Maddie's up," she laughed lightly, her green eyes flicking upwards to look at the other girl for a moment. "I should go before she forces me to get back into bed." She felt the blonde's giggle bubbling up from her chest before she heard it, causing her smile to grow slightly larger. "It was nice to be able to hear your voice." Her shoulders slumped slightly as the blonde held her slightly tighter.

"Yours too, sweet girl," she could hear the smile in her mother's voice. The content sigh that followed her words caused Corey to relax more. "Make sure you girls get some sleep."

* * *

Corey sat on the end of her bed, flipping through a paperback copy of _L.M. Alcott's Little Women_ as Madison sat in her underwear next to her, using a stethoscope and a blood pressure cuff to monitor her heart murmur. Corey tilted her book away from her face, the curl of a cat's paw pressed against her wrist. Her brows raised as she heard the repeated rapping of knuckles against doors in the hallway. Corey nudged Madison and the blonde pulled the stethoscope from her ears. She hummed in question, but very quickly received her answer.

"Rise and shine, ladies," Cordelia called out, moving from one door to the next as she knocked. Madison quickly pulled the blood pressure cuff from her arm, placing it down on the bed beside her. As the sound of Cordelia's heels neared Corey's door, Madison made her way across the room. The redhead rolled her eyes, knowing full well that the blonde would do just about anything to get a rise out of Cordelia.

"It's time for morning gathering," the headmistress called, this time much louder on the opposite side of the instructor's door. Madison stood in front of Corey's door, ready and willing to open it as soon as Cordelia knocked. Madison turned to her girlfriend with a smirk as she ripped the door open, looking back to a shocked Headmistress as she let the door swing open. Cordelia looked the blonde up and down, leaning against the wall with an open palm. Her jaw dropped open slightly as she realized her predicament. Corey watched from across the room with a smirk and a shake of her head, blocking half of her face with the book she had been reading previously. Cordelia closed her mouth quickly, swallowing as she nodded.

"I expect you both downstairs in five minutes," Cordelia spoke softly, her eyes locking with Corey's as she tilted her head. She shifted her weight, clasping her hands together in front of her.

"Shall I come in this?" Madison quipped, dropping an arm to her side with a raised brow. Cordelia nodded once as she ran her tongue over her upper lip, not wanting to argue with the blonde first thing in the morning. She turned to walk away and Madison watched her defeated demeanor with a smirk. As Cordelia hurried back down the hall, Madison swung the door shut. She sighed as she made her way back to the foot of Corey's bed.

"Do you really need to torment her every chance you get?" Corey sighed, running her thumb across her tongue before flipping to the next page of her book. Madison hummed in thought as she neared the redhead, draping her lanky arms over the girl's shoulders as she climbed back onto the bed.

"I'd like to say yes," She tilted her head. The blonde leaned her weight slightly in an attempt to take them both down onto the bed below them. Ophelia leapt off the bed with a huff. She found a spot of sunlight on the floor and plopped down with an audible thud.

"Maddie, we really don't have the time to play around right now," Corey sighed, dog-earing her page before closing her book and placing it on the bed next to her. The rapping of knuckles against doors echoed through the halls once more.

"Fiona? I know you're home," Cordelia called out, causing Corey to raise her brows at the blonde who clung to her.

"If we're not downstairs in time for morning gathering she's going to come right back up here," Corey groaned. She pulled her leg underneath her as she turned to face Madison. The blonde wasted no time in moving to climb into her lap, Corey's hands instinctively moving to the other girl's hips. "And you know the next time she comes up here she won't be knocking." A playful glimmer flashed in Madison's eyes, a lopsided grin quickly accompanying it.

"Then let's give her a show," the blonde teased, shaking her head as she leaned in closer. Her eyes moved to Corey's lips, watching as the redhead matched her own smirk. She could feel the girls breath on her neck as she arched her back slightly, craning her neck upwards to look at the blonde leaning over her.

"Open the door, Mother," Cordelia called out, growing impatient. Madison's bottom lip slipped in between her lips as Corey used one hand to pull one of her legs around her waist. She used the other to support herself as she quickly moved them both so that Madison's back was pressed against the white comforter on the neatly made mattress below her.

A playful squeal left the blonde's lips as the hand quickly found its way to her thigh, slowly moving toward Madison's hip. Corey heard one final knock against Fiona's door down the hall followed by the squeak of the door's hinges. With a smirk she leaned down, her lips mere centimeters away from Madison's. She watched as the blonde's eyes fluttered closed, her breath hitching slightly in anticipation.

"If only we had the time," the redhead whispered, quickly letting go of the blonde and jumping off the bed. She brushed the wrinkles from her black jeans as she moved to grab a pair of shoes, opting for a comfortable pair of combat boots after previously having to walk around in heels for a full day. Madison gasped at the loss of contact, shooting upright as she balled her fists at her sides.

"You're such a _tease_," Madison groaned, quickly slamming her fists against the bed in frustration. Corey laughed, slipping her feet into her boots. She grabbed the blonde's heart monitoring equipment, along with her book, and made her way to the nightstand on her side of the bed. Opening the drawer, she spoke again.

"Get dressed, Montgomery," she laughed, shaking her head. She pulled some of Madison's clothes from the drawer, tossing them into the girl's lap. With a reluctant huff, the blonde pulled the black t-shirt dress over her head.

"How come you get to be cute and I have to wear _this_?" Madison whined, her bottom lip jutting out in a pout. Corey rolled her eyes, pushing the drawer of the nightstand closed.

"Because," she sighed, turning to face the girl with a hand on her hip. "You decided not to bring clothes from your own room last night." Corey made her way towards her bedroom door, not meaning to remind Madison of her breakdown in the bathtub.

"And that means I have to look like a hobo while you get to look... sophisticated... like you _care_ about your appearance?" Madison teased, her eyes narrowing at the redhead as she got up to slip on a pair of knee high boots. "You're an _evil_ witch." Corey couldn't hold in her laugh as she turned to look at the blonde once more.

"So are you," the redhead teased, pulling her bedroom door open. Again, Madison's bottom lip slipped between her teeth as she watched Corey walk out of the room. The redhead rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she continued down the hall. The click of Madison's heels followed not too far behind her. The girls gathered with the rest of the witches, Cordelia mouthing a silent _thank you_ to Corey as she took a seat.

"Fiona, we're starting!" The headmistress called up the stairs, crossing her arms over her chest in frustration. Corey watched as Madison sat down with a smirk, folding her hands in her lap. She narrowed her eyes at the blonde, running her tongue over her teeth as she let out a dry laugh.

"That's my jacket," she cleared her throat, nodding at the actress across from her as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"It looks better on me," Madison shrugged, earning an eye roll from the redhead. Corey sat down in the open seat between Cordelia and Madison, leaving the open chair across from the headmistress open for the Supreme.

"So," Cordelia started, folding her hand in her lap and sitting up straight. "We're going to start this morning meeting off by going around the circle and talking about what brought you all here." The blonde looked around the circle with a smile, using her right hand to point to Queenie next to her.

"Queenie, why don't you start and we'll move around the circle counter-clockwise." Queenie looked at Cordelia with an expression that could only be described as _do you really want to try me right now?_ Reluctantly, Queenie nodded and told her story.

* * *

"Did they send you to jail?" Nan raised her brow quizzically as she leaned forward, tucking her feet underneath her in her spot on the couch.

"No. There were lots of witnesses, and none of them had actually seen me throw the oil. But it made the local newspaper, and that's how Miss Cordelia found me." Queenie looked up at the ceiling as she spoke, turning to look at Cordelia as she finished her sentence.

"You didn't want to join us at first." The headmistress said with a smile, tilting her head at the witch as she shared her story.

"I grew up on white girl shit like _Charmed_ and _Sabrina the Teenage Cracker_." Madison rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she slouched in her seat slightly. "I didn't know that there even _were_ black witches. But, as it turns out, I'm an heir to Tituba." Zoe narrowed her eyes at the other witch, trying to understand the words she was saying. The brunette was still new to all of these names and terms and she tried not to get too overwhelmed. After all, it was only her third day at the Academy. "She was a house slave in Salem. She was the first to be accused of witchcraft. So, technically, I'm part of your tribe." Nan looked to Queenie with a smile as the girl finished her sentence with a reluctant sigh.

"Is this where we all sing _Kum-Bah-Yah_?" Madison asked with a cocky smirk and a tilt of her head. She wanted nothing more than for what she called a 'witchy circle-jerk' to come to an end so she could go on with her day.

"Watch it, Madison," Corey groaned, standing from her seat as she watched Queenie launch up in the blonde's direction. Cordelia's words replayed in her head.

_Protecting Madison is_ _going to get you_ _killed._

"Bitch, I will eat you!" Queenie lunged forward, immediately blocked by Corey's form. She tried to move around the redhead only to be met with Cordelia's hands on her shoulder holding her back gently. Madison crossed her arms over her chest, looking up at Queenie from the safety of her chair with a smug smirk.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!" Corey crossed her arms over her chest, shifting her weight slightly as her hip jutted to the side. "You guys have got to start taking care of each other. We have enough enemies on the outside." Cordelia spoke softly, looking between the three girls with soft eyes. She hated scolding them, but Madison knew exactly how to push everyone's buttons.

"I can only reel her in so much, Dee, you know that." Corey sighed, dropping one arm to her side with a shake of her head. As they spoke, Spalding entered with two men in suits. Corey, who was facing the double doors, grabbed Cordelia's attention with a nod. Cordelia looked at the men with a furrowed brow as Corey stepped back, placing a hand on the headmistress' shoulder. Spalding used a finger to point to the men who entered the room as Queenie sat back down.

"Ms. Foxx? Ms. Luna?" One of the detectives asked, looking at the two women with a blank expression, trying not to convey emotion.

"Yes?" Cordelia asked, looking to Corey with a furrowed brow before looking back to the man who spoke previously.

"Detective Sanchez, NOPD Homicide." He opened his jacket to flash his badge at the girls, not leaving his spot in the doorway. Corey's hand fell from Cordelia's shoulder as she crossed her arms over her chest. She could see Madison and Zoe sharing a quick look from the corner of her eye as she swallowed hard. "My partner Detective Stiles." Detective Sanchez spoke quickly, using his hand to point to the man that stood behind him.

"What's this about?" Corey asked, tilting her head as she shifted her weight uncomfortably. She knew the answer without the detective having to say another word; Zoe and Madison weren't the best at being discrete with their shared glances.

"We'd like to have a word with two of your girls." Zoe's eyes darted between Cordelia and the detectives as she leaned away uncomfortably. Madison, on the other hand, swallowed hard as she looked up at the redhead next to her.


	6. six

THE REDHEAD LED THE GROUP INTO HER OFFICE as Cordelia sat in the girl's chair, making herself at home. Madison rolled her eyes, sitting at one of the two chairs at the end of the desk. Before the detectives could make their way into the office, the actress noticed the photo frame that sat in its usual spot on Corey's desk.

The frame held a photo of Corey and Madison backstage with Stevie at a charity event. Both younger witches were captured holding hands as they looked at each other with large smiles. Stevie stood with her arm around Madison's lower back as she watched the girls with a smirk. None of them paid any attention to the camera.

Corey loved the photo for all the reasons that someone would go about hating it. It was candid. It captured the exact relationship that the three had in one single photograph. Madison's eyes grew wide. She quickly kicked her toes against the side of the desk, causing the picture frame to tip over onto the desk.

"Shit," Corey mumbled. She quickly grabbed the frame that laid face down against the desk and tossed it into the top drawer. She took a step back as the detectives walked in. The men looked at the four girls in front of them, confused etched into their faces at the scene that had begun to deescalate.

"I'd like to ask once again what this is all about," Cordelia sat up straight. Her head tilted to the side slightly as the detectives closed both sets of French doors that led into Corey's office. Instead of answering, one of the men— Detective Stiles— stood by the doors while the other— Detective Sanchez— leaned against Corey's desk. His head turned to meet Madison at eye level.

Cordelia looked up at Corey, one brow arching upward. The redhead leaned her hip against the opposite side of the desk with her arms crossed over her chest. Her angry eyes focused on the detective who didn't seem to understand personal space. There was only a foot between his judgmental gaze and Madison's anxious, panicked, twitching lip.

"When a movie star like you shows up at a sorority house," Madison swallowed hard as he leaned in closer. She smiled unintentionally, a stress response ingrained in her from a young age as an audition coping mechanism. The detective attempted to do whatever he could to make the blonde break.

"People are gonna pay attention to where you go and with who." Zoe looked between Madison and Corey, her brows flicking upward in concern. She was completely unsure of the information that was considered 'public knowledge' amongst the room.

"Lot of people saw you go into a back room with some of the guys on the bus." Madison rolled her jaw. Her gaze shifted to focus on Corey for a moment as she swallowed hard. The redhead's nose twitched as she tried her hardest to not show any sign of her knowledge on situation in question.

"What does that have to do with the bus flipping?" Zoe leaned forward as she spoke up. Madison turned her head to look at the brunette, raising her brows in what one could only assume to be the blonde's attempt at a threatening maneuver. Corey shifted her weight uncomfortably.

"These are _teenaged_ girls." Both girls returned their attention to the headmistress seated in front of them as soon as they heard her voice. Corey wanted to roll her eyes; she knew Cordelia was exaggerating for effect. She also knew that the image that she chose to portray made it seem like Madison was immature, a choice made by her manager to _cater to a younger audience. _It was public knowledge that she was 21, both within her 'criminal' documentation and the industry.

Though, it wasn't much of a criminal record to begin with. Her mother claimed she was a 'problem child'. Rehab became her only solace, her home away from the chaos that Madison's mother brought with every step she took. "How could they possibly do that? This all seems so silly." Zoe looked to Madison briefly, letting Cordelia attempt to handle the situation.

"I'm just looking for someone who had a motive to hurt those guys," Madison tucked a hand in between her crossed legs, using her thighs to keep herself from fidgeting. "Who could've screwed with the breaks or the steering column. Maybe whatever happened in that room was upsetting." Detective Sanchez kept his eyes on Madison as he spoke, his hands not leaving the sides of Corey's desk. Corey scoffed as she shook her head.

"You really think a girl who obviously only weighs a hundred pounds soaking wet managed to meddle with a tour bus? Mind you, she can't even change a tire on her own. You really think she has the body strength to do any damage to a bus that size?" Corey rolled her eyes, shaking her head. "You're barking up the wrong tree, detective." She stood up straight from her resting position against the edge of her desk.

"Hey!" Madison squeaked in offense. The redhead could feel her phone vibrating in her back pocket but chose to ignore it. She assumed it was her manager or her producer contacting her in an attempt to get an ETA on the next album and that wasn't something important to her at the moment. What was important, however, was making sure the situation in her office wouldn't escalate unnecessarily.

"Shouldn't we have a lawyer here or something?" Zoe asked. Her eyes scanned the accumulation of people in front of her.

"We're just talking," the detective shrugged. His eyes landed on Corey who mirrored his demeanor across the desk. He returned his attention to Zoe who sat directly next to the redhead. "Did you know any of those boys? Had you met them before?"

"No." Madison piped up. She looked between the detective and Zoe as she shook her head. "We barely spoke to them that night." She looked back to the detective before continuing. "They took me in the back room to get me high, but I said no." Madison looked at him with large doe eyes. She didn't want to talk about what had happened, but she also knew that there was nothing that connected the coven, or herself, to the bus flip.

"She's sober." Zoe added with a proud nod. _Of course she is_, Corey held in the groan she so badly wanted to let out. Madison wasn't the image she'd been portrayed as over the years.

"Except vodka," Madison looked to Zoe with a half-assed smirk before turning back to the detective. Corey quickly cleared her throat, shaking the frustrated tone from her core. Madison had a party-girl image to protect. In fact, to her, any image was better than the world knowing that the only thing she was ever guilty of was being her authentic self behind closed doors.

"Uh, Madison has a wicked sense of humor." Corey sighed. She shook her head slightly as she bit back the angry growl that threatened to bubble up. "But in fact, she's come a long way with her addiction issues." She cleared her throat once more as she looked back at Madison with an empathetic gaze. "We're very proud of her." Corey gave the girl a small smile, her head tilted ever so slightly.

It hurt the redhead to have to blatantly lie about her girlfriend. The only _addiction_ the blonde had was nonconforming; her 'lifestyle' went against her mother's beliefs, against what the industry saw as profitable, so it stayed buried. Her short stints in rehab or reform facilities directly correlated with public relation nightmares. It was the same reason why, once she turned 19, the visits forced on her by her mother had stopped.

"Can I ask you why you visited one of the survivors in the hospital?" Detective Sanchez immediately turned his attention to Zoe. The girl's jaw dropped at the question. Madison's breath caught in her throat as she turned to look at the brunette, her lip quivering as her gaze quickly moved to Corey. The redhead clenched her jaw, closing her eyes. She knew that Zoe taking care of things without being noticed was far too good to be true.

Detective Stiles finally moved away from the door, pulling a photo of Zoe from the day before out of the blue folder in his hands. He held the photograph in front of Zoe for her to look at, making the brunette more anxious than she already was. Cordelia retained her composure, sitting tall with her hands folded on top of the desk in front of her.

"Um... I felt bad for him." Zoe looked down at her feet as she spoke, her eyes flicking up to the detective as she finished her sentence. Corey's eyes shot open as she exhaled sharply. Madison focused on the desk in front of her, realizing that things were about to take a turn for the worse.

"Zoe," Corey warned, her face stern as she tilted her head. The brunette continued to ramble and Madison looked up at her with pleading eyes.

"We-we just met him the night before." Madison nodded slowly, looking back up at the detective and forcing a smirk. "He seemed nice." Zoe talked with her hands, nodding as well.

"Zoe, seriously," Corey added, talking through her teeth. "Shut up." Again, the brunette ignored her.

"He died right after you left." The brunette's jaw dropped again and she sat completely still, not knowing what to say next. "The doctors can't quite figure out how, but when we checked you out, we noticed that another boy you knew died in the exact same way right before you got here." She took in a shaky breath, her eyes locked on the man who continued to lean into Madison's personal bubble. The blonde's eyes moved back and forth quickly, trying to piece things together on her own. "A boy named Charles Taylor." Cordelia looked between the two girls in front of her, Zoe whimpering as she tried to breathe while Madison's eyes locked on Corey.

"They gang-raped her, and they got what they deserved!" Zoe broke out into tears as Madison's head snapped in her direction. The look of pure betrayal was evident on the blonde as she rolled her jaw and scoffed.

"Zoe, shut the _fuck_ up." Corey snapped. Her eyes filled with the flicker of an angry flame as she glared at the young witch. Cordelia looked up at her with a concerned brow as Madison scoffed.

"How did you flip the bus? Was it the wheels? It was the wheels." Detective Sanchez spoke louder to compensate for Zoe's sobbing.

"I have no idea what she's talking about." Madison tried to diffuse the situation as best as she could but she couldn't get the detective to believe her after Zoe's breakdown. "I... Nobody raped me." Zoe shot up from her seat and Corey instinctively moved forward, placing a hand on the brunette's shoulder.

"She's clearly lost her mind." Madison's icy glare immediately returned to Zoe, causing the girl to huff and stutter, moving her hands as she tried to think of the words to say.

"Zoe, you need to sit down and shut up," Corey spoke through clenched teeth, her eyes just as angry as Madison's.

"Madison did it." Zoe's arm lurched outward so she could point directly at the blonde who remained seated. Corey's hand dropped from Zoe's shoulder before immediately latching to her own brow. She quickly pulled her hand down her face with a shake of her head.

"She can move things with her mind. An-and Corey can conjure fire. And I killed that asshole in the hospital! I have powers, too. We're witches." Zoe clenched her fists to her side, leaning forward with her shoulders squared as she spat through her tears. The detective shook his head, blinking rapidly.

"I'm sorry, Detective." Cordelia shot up from her seat, keeping her hands folded in front of her. "Zoe has clearly suffered some kind of mental break." The headmistress made her way around the side of the desk but didn't get far before Zoe began yelling again.

"No!" The brunette yelled out, stomping her foot. "No, enough lying. It's over!" She turned back to the detective, her hands clasped together as she begged. "Everyone here is a witch. I'm so sorry. Please don't send us to jail." Zoe began to cry again. Madison exhaled sharply through her nose, closing her eyes to keep herself from throwing the brunette against a wall telekinetically.

"Nobody's going to jail." Fiona pushed one of the French doors to Corey's office open before standing just inside the doorway with her arms crossed over her chest. The scent of alcohol wafted across the room as she entered, causing Corey's nose to twitch involuntarily. "Girls. Will you leave us, please?" Zoe ran out of the room and Madison stood slowly, shaking her head. "Corey, you too." Fiona pointed a finger at the redhead before nodding her head in the direction of the open door behind her.

"Right," Corey nodded, taking her leave as soon as she was requested to do so.

"Are you in charge here?" Detective Sanchez took a step away from the desk, making his way towards Fiona.

"I'm Fiona Goode. I'm in charge everywhere." The Supreme spoke with an air of elegance as Corey closed the door behind her, trying to catch up to Madison and Zoe while still trying to hear what was being said within her own office.

"We're gonna have to take both of those girls in for questioning. We'll try to keep this quiet, but," Detective Sanchez paused for a moment before continuing his sentence. "That Madison girl..." Corey scoffed, shaking her head as she moved down the hall, quickly finding her way up the stairs and in the general direction of the wing reserved for the younger witches.

"Maddie," Corey called out. She followed the blonde down the hall. "Wait." Madison shook her head, turning on her heels to face the taller girl.

"You knew," the blonde's lip quivered as she stood up taller, craning her neck to look up at the redhead. "She told you, didn't she?" Her attention turned to Zoe as she pointed a finger at the brunette, her eyes narrowed as all trust in the other girl immediately faded away. "She obviously can't keep her mouth shut and cracks under pressure."

"No," Corey sighed, looking down at her feet as she shook her head.

"Then how did you—" Before she could even finish her sentence, it clicked. "You used your divination on _me?" _Madison scoffed, raising her voice as she shook her head. "You're absolutely unbelievable." She crossed her arms over her chest as she shook her head once more, choosing to look anywhere around the hallway instead of directly at her girlfriend. "For all I know, you've used your _music magic_ on me, too."

"Don't talk about it so loudly," Corey hissed. She stepped forward with an outreached hand. Before her fingers could touch Madison's shoulder, the blonde pulled away, the anger clearly evident on her face. "I don't have the greatest control over it, Maddie," Corey sighed. Her shoulders fell slowly as she exhaled. "I truly didn't overstep on purpose, it's not like I can just turn it off. I've had it for _six months _and I still haven't figured out how this new power works." She paused, swallowing hard as she shook her head. "And you _know_ I would _never_ use that compulsion on you."

"That's exactly my point, you've had _six months_ to figure it out," Madison rolled her eyes. She turned away from the redhead to leave her in the hallway alone. "And _you,"_ the blonde called out. She followed Zoe into their shared bedroom. "You're such a god damn idiot. I can't believe you told them everything. I'm supposed to be cleaning up my act. When this gets out, I'm screwed."

"Who cares? This is murder. Like, multiple murders." Zoe folded into herself as she yelled back at the blonde, clenching her fists in frustration.

"They're not gonna find any evidence that we messed with the bus because we didn't mess with the bus! What did you do to that shit-dick in the hospital, though?" Madison stomped into her corner of their shared room, though the two hadn't spent a night in it simultaneously yet, as Corey made her way inside. The redhead's phone vibrated in her back pocket for what felt like the 400th time. She reluctantly removed it from her pocket as she spoke.

"Look, Zoe, I appreciate what you did. I truly do. You didn't have to go out of your way to help, but you also did the _exact_ opposite of what I said. What do you think _don't get caught_ means?" Corey's freehand moved from the back of her hair to her side as it dropped in frustration. "Also, what the _fuck_ did you think I meant when I told you to _stop talking_ because it sure as shit didn't seem like you understood what I said."

The redhead looked down at her phone; the name _Trinity Pine_ scrolled across her screen. She held her breath for a moment, blinking rapidly. "Shit," she muttered. Before she could answer her phone, the bedroom door in front of her flew open. She immediately braced herself for the wrath of the Supreme.

"Idiots," Fiona groaned. She flicked her wrist to send the three girls backwards. Zoe and Madison were quickly airborne and hit the walls behind them with a loud thud as Corey skidded backwards, her feet firmly planted against the hardwood floors as she protected herself. Zoe landed safely in her bed as Madison crashed against a bookshelf before hitting the floor.

"Will you stop _throwing_ them already?" Corey looked to her feet for a moment, willing herself to come to a stop before she looked back up at Fiona. The Supreme rolled her eyes at the redhead before continuing, her attention on Zoe who was quickly moving to sit herself up on her bed.

"Have you any idea what's going on out there?" Fiona's attention quickly turned to Madison on the other side of the room with a point of her finger. "Now, I forgave your ham-handed mass murder business with the bus... Over exuberance of youth and all that," again, she turned to Zoe, the anger in her voice evident.

"But if you haven't got the goddamn brains to know that when strangers come asking questions, we close ranks," she raised her voice, taking a threatening step towards the brunette. "Then I fear our line is truly at an end." Fiona shook her head as she looked up at the ceiling, running her tongue over her teeth as Zoe spoke up.

"But they knew so much already." The brunette spoke in a whimper, as if the only way she could speak was through her own tears.

"They didn't know shit, Zoe," Corey clenched her fist, shaking her head.

"I couldn't toast a piece of bread with the heat they were putting on you." The Supreme stomped forward, closing the distance until she was equally apart from both Zoe and Corey. "_You_ are soft. You're emotional. You care what people think. And _you," _Fiona's attention turned to Corey. "You're in over your head if you think you can protect _her_," the Supreme's finger pointed to Madison again, her eyes focused on the redhead in front of her, "from the things that go bump in the night." She paused, letting her jaw lock for a moment as she looked the redhead up and down.

"I would've thought your mother taught you better than that." Corey rolled her jaw, crossing her arms over her chest as her nose twitched at the Supreme's words. While she wanted to be angry, Fiona was right. Madison crossed her arms over her chest, crumbling into herself as she looked at Corey with sad eyes. She took in a shaky breath as Fiona started speaking again.

"Now, if there's one thing you learn before leaving this place, it's that we, even the _weakest_ among us," her pointed finger quickly moved to Zoe, one brow arched upwards, "are better than the best of them." Madison's arms dropped to her sides as she took in an angry breath, preparing to speak before promptly being cut off by Zoe.

"Are we gonna get arrested?" The brunette asked, taking the bottom hem of her sweater and twirling it between her fingers.

"You are missing the point." Fiona emphasized her words with her hands, looking directly at Zoe as she spoke.

"Which is?" Madison shook her head, waiting for an answer.

"The point is..." Fiona's eyes watered with frustration as she turned to look at Madison once more. "In this whole wide wicked world, the only thing you have to be afraid of... is me." The Supreme's gaze bounced between Madison and Zoe as she spoke, finally looking at Corey as she finished her sentence. She sent one last glare in Zoe's direction before walking out of the room, stomping down the hallway. Corey quickly followed her, letting out a harsh sigh as she stopped in the doorway. She turned to look between Madison and Zoe before speaking one last time.

"Class starts in an hour, I expect you both to be there." There was nothing but authority in the redhead's tone as she spoke. She quickly turned on her heels, leaving the two alone in their shared bedroom.


	7. seven

THE BURNING OF INCENSE CALMED HER NERVES as she sat on top of the baby grand in the makeshift classroom. She tapped her laser pointer against her palm as she swung her legs back and forth anxiously. The classroom prep had been finished 30 minutes prior. Corey's last half hour had been spent in the room alone, waiting for her PR manager to call her back.

She had wheeled the whiteboard from the closet into the center of the room and placed the chairs around her accordingly. The stark contrast between the black instruments and chairs and the bright white shell of the classroom made it feel much larger than it was. She bit her lip, completely unsure of what was so important that Trinity needed to call her repeatedly but couldn't leave a voicemail or answer when she had finally returned the woman's call.

Nan was the first to enter the classroom, which eased the redhead slightly. The youngest witch took her time to look around at the memorabilia that Corey had used to line the walls; an attempt to break up the overly sanitized feeling that loomed over them. A small smile played on her features, though Corey remained anxious over the situation as a whole.

Queenie shortly followed. She opted to take a seat instead of venturing around the room. The playlist that Corey had on at a low volume switched from Fleetwood Mac's _Sisters of the Moon_ to David Bowie's _The Pretty Things Are Going to Hell_ as Zoe and Madison finally entered together. The blonde let out a huff as she threw herself into the chair closest to the window while Zoe sat down quietly next to her. She was frustrated, her face buried in her phone. She refused to look up at the redhead, her fingers typing furiously against her phone screen. As Nan finally found her seat, Corey addressed the room.

"Good afternoon, ladies," Corey spoke loud enough to be heard over the music that played softly from her Bluetooth speaker. She held her laser pointer between her fingers as she jumped down from the side of the piano. When no one replied, the redhead sighed softly. She looked around at the group in front of her who seemed to be too engrossed in their phones to pay much attention.

"If you refrain from willingly participating I'll have no other choice than to call on each of you individually and no one enjoys that. So I say once more," her gaze moved across the group in front of her, their chairs arranged in a semicircle. "Good afternoon, ladies." Madison rolled her eyes, keeping her attention on her cellphone in her hands as the rest of the group chirped back.

"Good afternoon, Corey." The redhead rolled her jaw as her focus remained on the blonde. She couldn't tell if the girl was mad at her for something she couldn't control or if she and Zoe had been in another argument while she had been downstairs. The thought of Trinity getting ahold of the blonde crossed her mind briefly before she continued on with her lesson.

"For generations, our kind has hidden in plain sight," Corey moved over to the whiteboard, grabbing a black dry erase marker as she shoved her laser pointer into her back pocket. "And with every generation comes a _witch_ or a _warlock_ who can't help but share the stories of our kind through a form of art; be it music, film, literature, et cetera." She turned to face the group. Quickly, she noticed that the only two witches before her that were paying any attention were Nan and Zoe.

"Madison," Corey's tone was a combination of annoyance and false excitement, which gained the blonde's attention very quickly. "Since you're so eager to _participate_ in the lesson, why don't you start us off by giving us an example?"

"What, no fun little _and that's what you missed on GLEE_? Aren't you supposed to do one of those recaps for the new girl?" The blonde huffed. Her hand moved around for emphasis as she rolled her shoulders, dropping her cellphone into her lap. Corey rolled her eyes as she sighed, knowing she wouldn't be getting as much out of the blonde as she had initially.

"Is there a reason why there are so many of us in art related fields of work?" Zoe asked. Her head tilted slightly as she leaned forward against her forearms, trying to find a window of opportunity to break the tension in the room.

"Good question!" Corey quickly replied, extending a finger in Zoe's direction. "They're using art as a way to strengthen that same part of their brain that holds control over their magic. Some even have specific music-related powers."

"Like Stevie?" Nan tilted her head, one brow arching upwards as she spoke.

"Yes!" Corey nodded, pulling the cap from her marker to scribble the name _Stevie Nicks_ on her whiteboard. "Stevie Nicks, the _white witch_ and former member of Fleetwood Mac," Corey scribbled the band's name under Stevie's quickly before turning her attention back to the girls in front of her.

"Stevie has a very specific music-related power that was passed down to her on her father's side. It goes by the name of _Siren's Song_," Corey drew an arrow and wrote the power's name in quotation marks. "And it only grows stronger with each generation." She clicked the cap down on her marker and looked back to the group with a nod.

"What does it do?" Queenie asked. She leaned back in her seat with her arms crossed over her chest. Corey opened her mouth slightly, her lip twitching as she let out a dry laugh.

"Well, like I said, it's different for every user, but the core of the power remains the same. It's used to command an audience." The redhead swallowed hard tilting her head slightly as Nan opened her mouth again.

"What does _your_ Siren's Song do?" The girl asked, sitting up taller as she turned her head. She looked over at Madison with a smirk. Corey sighed, blinking rapidly.

"I have the ability to play any instrument without having ever learned how," she spoke quickly. She looked at Madison who raised her brows at the redhead, crossing her arms over her chest. When Nan continued her power trip, Corey pursed her lips together as she squeezed her eyes closed.

"And you can—" Corey cut her off, her hands clipping against her hips.

"This class isn't about _my_ powers, Nan, now get out of my head," the redhead's eyes snapped open, landing on the youngest member of the group.

"Oh, just show them for Christ's sake," Madison groaned. She threw her head back in frustration. Corey's hands shot up in defense before they landed firmly against her sides again. "If you don't she's going to spill it anyway."

"Fine," Corey sighed. She shook her head. She took a few steps forward, kneeling down in front of Zoe. "Can I see your hands?" She asked, pointing a finger at the brunette as she looked up at her quickly. Madison sat up in her seat slightly, watching the interaction between the two with an intense glare.

"I—" she paused, her brows furrowed as she stuttered in confusion. "I guess?" She reached out a hand, which Corey quickly took and examined. The redhead nodded once, dropping the girl's hand as she stood.

"Zoe, have you ever played the guitar?" She asked, turning to grab her personal acoustic from its stand in the corner of the room.

"Not that I can remember," the brunette looked at her with a furrowed brow as she shook her head slightly. "I don't think I'd even know what to do with one if I had it in my hands, to be honest." Zoe let out an awkward laugh as Corey slowly returned to the semi-circle with an acoustic guitar in one hand and a set of drum sticks in the other. Madison looked at the redhead with a glare, clenching her teeth slightly.

"Take this," Corey said. She passed the guitar to Zoe who took it with anxious, shaking hands. She turned to Queenie, reaching out her hand with the set of drumsticks. "And you too." Queenie rolled her eyes crossing one leg over the other.

"I'm not playing your stupid game, _Luna_," Queenie groaned. She sank in her chair with a huff.

"The more you fight it the harder I have to work to focus, please just do this one thing." Corey tilted her head at the girl, her eyes pleading.

"Why doesn't _Madison_ have to participate? She wasn't even paying attention!" The girl quipped back, dropping her arms to her sides in frustration.

"Because I promised her I would never use this power on her and I intend on keeping that promise," Corey's anger in her voice grabbed Queenie's attention. Madison's stone-cold features faltered for a moment, her eyes growing soft. Queenie's shoulders fell slightly as she locked eyes with the redhead.

"You're going to take these and you're going to listen to what I have to tell you without fighting me every step of the way." Queenie reached out and took the drumsticks, her hand shaking slightly as she nodded.

"Ye-yeah," she muttered. She swallowed hard. Corey cleared her throat, breaking eye contact as she stepped away. Queenie's eyes fluttered open and closed as she blinked quickly, her brow furrowed slightly. Zoe grabbed her chair and the guitar and moved so that she was sitting near the whiteboard in front of the group. Meanwhile, Queenie stood and moved towards the drum set on the opposite side of the room in a confused state.

Corey took Queenie's spot as she grabbed a second guitar for herself. The redhead pulled her phone from her back pocket, silencing the music that had been playing softly. She held the guitar in her lap with one hand as she sat facing Zoe and Queenie, a slight smirk on her face.

"What now?" Zoe asked. Her voice shook slightly as she took in a breath.

"Now you play," Corey shrugged. She watched Zoe nod feverishly for a moment before looking down at the frets as her fingers trembled. The brunette took in another breath before closing her eyes, her fingers finding where they needed to be on their own. Within seconds, Zoe was flying through the acoustic intro to _Crazy on You_ by _Heart_. Her eyes opened, locking with Corey's as the redhead joined in time with Queenie on the drums. A voice caught Corey off guard, causing her to lose her focus.

"Well what do we have here?" The clicking of heels trailed after the Supreme's voice, her head tilted as she looked from one side of the room to the other. "A little _family band?"_ With Corey's lack of focus came the sour chords and clattering of symbols as Queenie and Zoe immediately lost all ability to play their designated instruments. The redhead felt the blood trickling through her sinuses before she could even question Fiona's presence. She stood, moving to return her guitar to its stand.

"Ladies, you constantly question the need to control your powers," Corey ignored Fiona, moving quickly to grab a tissue from her piano before the blood began to drip from her nose. She turned, facing all four girls— and the Supreme— before speaking again.

"I give you exhibit a." She smirked as she felt the blood drip from her nostril slightly, holding the tissue in her hand away from her face before quickly moving it to wipe away the blood that began to pool against her upper lip.

"Over exertion comes in many forms. Nosebleeds are the most common and the easiest to combat, followed by fainting spells and— for those on the extreme end of the spectrum— memory loss." Corey wiped her upper lip with her tissue once more, turning her attention to Nan. She cleared her throat, her brows raised slightly as she tilted her head. "Did that answer your question?" She asked, earning a large grin and a nod from the youngest witch.

"Your file said nothing about your mastery of _Concilium_, Corinna," Fiona scoffed. Her brows arched upwards as she folded her arms over her chest. Corey rolled her eyes at the Supreme, her jaw shifting slightly as she shoved her tissue into the front pocket of her jeans.

"Class is dismissed, ladies," the redhead said with a wave. "Try not to get into too much trouble during the rest of your day." She crossed her own arms over her chest before taking a step towards Fiona. She lowered her volume, shifting her weight as she spoke to the Supreme while the girls gathered their things. "Fiona, Concilium isn't in my file because I don't have it," Corey scoffed, looking up at the ceiling.

"Then explain what that little show was," Fiona prodded. She unfolded her arms to talk with her hands. "Because, to me, _that_ was mind control." Corey's tongue clicked against the roof of her mouth as she nodded, taking another step forward.

"Siren's Song evolves with every generation that bears its power," the redhead explained. Her head tilted as she raised her brows at the older woman. "You would have heard that if you had been in the room for the lesson. Now, I'd appreciate it if you'd allow me to continue to teach the girls in peace in the future." She shook her head, pushing past the older woman to follow the rest of the girls out the door.

Waiting at the end of the hallway was Madison, her eyes locked on her phone once more. She stood with her thumb nail resting between her teeth. Corey moved cautiously, her brow furrowed as she tried to understand what was going through the blonde's mind. As she grew closer, she was able to catch a glimpse of what Madison was so focused on. Someone had caught them acting _friendlier_ than 'best friends' theoretically would.

They always had theories circulating that they were more than friends, and— while it was true— it wasn't something that either girl's management team thought was beneficial to their careers. Once again, their photos circulated through social media. Outlets like _Just Jared_, _Pink News_, and _TMZ_ had been sharing images of the girls gazing at each other lovingly, the gap between theme practically nonexistent.

"At least they got some cute pictures," Corey shrugged. A light laugh left her lips as Madison rolled her eyes. "It's not the worst they've ever tried to spread, I don't understand what was so urgent that Trin needed our attention." The blonde shrugged, letting out a soft sigh as she locked her phone. It was early afternoon, and she already felt like she'd spent a full day on set.

Madison looked up at the redhead with sad eyes, overwhelmed from the day she had already had to endure. She swallowed hard, unable to conjure up the energy to respond as she pushed off the wall. She took Corey's hand in her own and quietly led her up the stairs.


	8. eight

A SINGLE FLICKERING LIGHT ILLUMINATED THE PARLOR as the redhead sat at the piano, her fingers hovering over the keys. No matter how badly she wanted to play, she couldn't bring herself to let her fingertips dance across the ivory. The knowledge of Madison's assault loomed over her, a blanket of 'could have, should have, would have' flooding her mind. She continued to blame herself for not having been with the girls that night, harboring the pain that she felt following through with her word had caused.

Corey stood from her seat at the piano and moved into the large dining room. She shook her head, sliding the liquor cabinet open with one hand and an inward sigh. She swallowed hard, pulling out a decanter full of liquor and a single glass before turning and placing both down on the table behind her. The pattering of bare feet approaching pulled her attention away from the liquor in front of her as she called out into the darkness.

"Can't sleep?" She asked, not yet seeing the form of the witch that approached. She could eliminate a few members of the coven from a list of who could have been awake and exploring the dark, quiet, halls of the academy so late at night. Madison refused to walk around the lower floor of the estate without something protective on her feet, her slight mysophobia getting the best of her.

Cordelia only stayed at the estate while Hank was out of town and, aware that he hadn't left for his business trip yet, Corey knew it couldn't have been her. Queenie walked with an extra hop in her step, moving mostly on the balls of her feet, and the footsteps moving near her were very much heel-to-toe. The only options left were Zoe, Nan, and Fiona; not only did Spalding not speak, but he moved without making a sound.

"Just need a drink," the Supreme let out a light laugh. She clenched her closed hand slightly as she moved into the dim light of the parlor, rolling the pills she held in her palm in a circular motion with her fingertips. Corey nodded once, popping the decorative plug out of the top of the decanter and pouring its contents into the glass beside it.

"You're not usually up this late," Fiona added. She attempted to make small-talk while she waited for Corey to pass her the glass. A light laugh left the redhead's lips as she placed the decanter back down against the table, her fingers wrapping around the glass as she lifted it to pass it to the older woman in front of her.

"It's silly, really," Corey shook her head. A small smirk played on her lips as she reached her arm out. Fiona raised a brow as if asking for her to explain. "Madison's upset with me over things I can't really control. For some reason, it's keeping me awake." It wasn't a lie, the fact that Madison was giving her the cold shoulder had been bothering her slightly but she knew that, within time, the blonde would go back to instigating her usual banter. Fiona nodded once, a hum leaving her lips as she reached out to take the glass from Corey.

Their fingers brushed against each other and, just like with Madison, the things Fiona wanted to keep hidden flickered before the younger witch. A strange heat crept across Corey's neck as she watched a young Fiona slide a blade across Anna Leigh Leighton's throat. She stood slightly taller as Fiona tossed her head back, washing her medication down with the contents of the glass in her hand. The smirk on the redhead's lips faltered as she blinked back the flickers of Fiona's past that had invaded her vision.

"Ah, to be young and _in_ _love_ again," Fiona sighed. She shook her head as she rolled her eyes at the redhead. Corey turned away, reaching for another glass out of the liquor cabinet. She froze slightly, stammering as she opened her mouth to counter Fiona's comment.

"W-we're... we're not," Corey stood still. She was unsure of the next move to make. She already knew that the Supreme found the Montgomery girl to be her weakness, but Madison had never verbally stated the words that Fiona had been insinuating. If she had, she hadn't said them to Corey directly.

"Oh, please," Fiona scoffed. She moved to the sofa in the middle of the parlor before sitting in the center of it. "I know young love when I see it, Corinna." She shook her head. The redhead quickly grabbed a glass and followed her lead. Corey poured herself a few fingers of liquor as she listened to Fiona's ramblings. She pointed a wavering finger at the younger witch, a sideways grin on her face as she spoke.

"She'll come to her senses eventually," the Supreme adjusted her weight slightly while she sat so that she could face the redhead. Corey swallowed hard, gulping back the bitter taste that Fiona's words left in her own mouth. "They always do." Fiona reached out, placing a reassuring hand against Corey's knee.

The redhead nodded, bringing her glass up to her lips instead of verbally responding. She wanted to groan, to roll her eyes and lace her words with venom as she stood up for the blonde. She wanted to tell the Supreme that she had no clue who she was talking about, but she stayed silent. Because Fiona was right. The longer the Supreme stayed with the coven, the more Corey saw a likeness between the two. The difference was that Madison wasn't one to assassinate her competition.

Sure, there were the incidents with the director and the bus, but she had her reasons for those specific encounters. Whereas Fiona killed for power, Madison did it to protect herself. At least, Corey hoped that was the reason. She wasn't sure what she would do if Madison devolved into the horror that is Fiona Goode, but she knew that— whatever it came to be— it wouldn't be enjoyable on either of their parts.

* * *

The loud half-whispers of the girls on the upper level of the academy pulled Corey from her sleep. She groaned as she shrugged her jacket on. She took a step out the double doors of her bedroom that led out onto the wrap around balcony. After staying up and drinking with Fiona for most of the night, the last thing she needed was to be ripped from her light slumber because there was a _boy_ outside.

"He's cute," Nan muttered. Corey rolled her eyes. She ran a hand through her loose curls before pulling her hood over her head as she made her way to the corner that Queenie and Nan had camped out on.

"Like butter on a stick," Queenie sighed. She leaned her elbow against the stark white railing below her. As she hummed, she shook her head. The girls watched as the neighbor grabbed the bottom hem of his t-shirt and tugged it over his head.

"What are we gawking at?" Corey asked. She shoved a hand into her jacket pocket to pull out her pack of cigarettes, leaning against the pillar as she looked between the girls and the group below them. She immediately found the boy they had been drooling over as he emerged from the moving truck with a box in his arms. The click of heels approached behind her. Corey relaxed slightly, knowing that Madison wasn't far behind.

"Our new neighbors moving in next door." Nan smirked. She turned to look at Corey briefly as Madison leaned against the wrought iron railing on the edge of the balcony.

The redhead rolled her eyes at the faux fur coat that Madison had decided to wear in the Louisiana heat. The blonde continued to put fashion over her own personal comfort as usual. Corey pulled a cigarette towards her lips, the flame flickering at the end before it even neared her mouth as she shoved her pack back into her pocket with her free hand. She watched as who she assumed to be the boy's mother approached the movers with a tray of lemonade.

"Where's your modesty?" The woman called out. She shook her head at the shirtless boy as she moved slowly, making sure not to spill the glasses of lemonade filled to the brim on the silver platter in her hands. "Put your shirt on." She spoke quickly as she neared the metal bed attached to the back of the moving truck.

"It's totally wet, Mom," the boy responded in a groan. He huffed as he moved a chair wrapped in plastic from the back of the truck to the metal bed under his feet. Corey sighed silently, her free hand moving to rest against Madison's back.

The blonde quickly pulled away from the girl's touch. Her angry eyes landed on Corey's peachy face before they quickly returned to the scene that unfolded below them. After the conversation she had with Trinity, Madison wasn't comfortable. Even having slept beside the redhead the night before, she was terrified of the idea that her team could pull her away from her home at any moment.

"Hell is naked before him and destruction hath no covering." The neighbor spoke in a monotone voice, shaking her head at the boy who hadn't listened to her requests. She placed the tray down gently, her head tilted as she stood up straight.She looked around, taking in their surroundings, before her gaze landed on the four girls standing on the balcony above them.

Though Corey wasn't looking in their direction, she could still tell that the group had been caught people watching. It seemed as though Madison had realized this as well as a smirk crept across her face, her fingers tapping against the railing delicately.

"Get in the house and put on a clean shirt." The woman's brows furrowed as she watched the group above them. Her son turned to see the four girls on the balcony next door with a raised brow. His eyes locked with Madison's as she tilted her head. Her eyes narrowed at the boy who stood with his mouth slightly agape. There was a tense silence that surrounded the group, causing the girls to shift their weight anxiously.

"Has, uh, anyone seen Zoe this morning?" Corey asked. She kicked off the pillar behind her as she flicked the ash from the end of her cigarette. Madison shrugged, turning to look at the taller girl with a bland expression on her face.

"She said she had to go meet up with someone, wouldn't be back before breakfast," the blonde sucked the corner of her bottom lip into her mouth as she tried to keep the extra details of the situation to herself. Although she knew fully well that the redhead was most likely aware of the other girl's whereabouts, she wouldn't spill any details— especially after having fought with the brunette about _visiting victim's family members_.

"Well, in that case, I'm going down to eat. I'm sure Spalding has breakfast ready by now, and it seems like the show is over." Corey flicked her cigarette off the balcony and into the front yard of the academy, rocking on her heels as she turned.

"Shit, me too, I'm ready to eat," Queenie spoke with a smile as she pushed off the railing, ready to follow the redhead down the hall and back into the building. Madison laughed, bringing her hand up to her face to stifle the noise that erupted from her throat.

"When aren't you?" She asked. She followed in suit as she quickly moved to step in line with Corey. The redhead could hear the movement behind her before she heard Queenie attempt to speak again, rolling her eyes at the encounter between the two young witches.

"If you didn't have your guard dog, I swear, I'd snap you like a twig," Queenie threatened. Her fists clenched at her sides as Nan slowly joined the group behind her.

"Just ignore her," Corey spoke over her shoulder. She glared at the blonde who matched her pace. "She knows she gets a rise out of you, it's the only reason she keeps doing it." Madison rolled her eyes, a light groan leaving her lips.

"Thank you, _Captain Clairvoyance,_" the blonde muttered. She spoke loud enough for the rest of the group to hear. "We all _truly_ wanted your input on the situation at hand." The sarcasm dripped from her lips as she spoke, her head shaking slightly with the attitude that rolled off her shoulders.

"Not clairvoyant," Corey groaned. She rolled her eyes as she reached for the door handle in front of them. The door pulled open with a sigh and Corey stepped back to let the girls into the hallway before her. They walked through the halls in silence, Corey quickly taking the lead of the group once more.

As they walked past Fiona's room, she could hear angry whispering coming from behind the closed door. The redhead wasn't sure if the Supreme was talking on the phone or if she was arguing with someone in the room but she wasn't going to stay and find out. By the time the group entered the dining room with plates in hand, Nan finally broke the silence.

"I can't stop thinking about our new neighbor. He's nice," she leaned forward, grabbing a handful of berries to pile onto her plate. Corey, being the oldest, stood in the back of the line behind Queenie and let the other girls fill their plates first. "He's waiting for someone." Nan grabbed more fruit for her plate as Madison reached for a spoon. The blonde scooped up some blackberries before adding other various fruits to the collection in her possession.

"Maybe he likes a little chocolate," Queenie grabbed a muffin from the table as she spoke, quickly moving around Madison to follow Nan to the other baked goods that scattered the table. The blonde laughed through her nose, shaking her head as she handed the spoon to Corey, their hands brushing against each other gently as the redhead rolled her eyes.

"It's hilarious to listen to you _virgins_ get all hot and bothered." Madison spoke with a smirk, stepping to the side as she put her plate down and quickly pulled out a chair. She made sure to leave the chair next to her open knowing that she still wanted the other girl close.

"I'm not a virgin," Nan chirped proudly, holding her head up high. Corey couldn't hold in her laugh as she put her plate down to Madison's right, the table settings prepared as though Spalding had known in advance that Zoe wouldn't be joining them for breakfast.

"I'm not. I get it on all the time. _And_ guys find me _hot."_ Nan spoke proudly as she sat down. She tucked her feet underneath her as she tried to gain some height at the table that was too tall for her to be comfortably seated at.

"Look at you," once again, Madison's voice was dripping with a sarcastic undertone. She rolled her eyes, her shoulder bumping against Corey's in a falsely accidental manner as she adjusted her seat underneath her.

While the girls talked across the table, Corey's head turned at the sound of a wheeled cart moving in their direction. She sat up taller, her protective instincts over Madison taking over as she finally pulled her hood from the crown of her head. The blonde looked up from her plate with a smirk, her eyes locking on the youngest member of the coven who sat directly across from her.

"Who'd have thought we'd have so much in common?" She picked up her fork as she looked back down at her plate, quickly stabbing some fruit before looking back up at the two witches seated across from her. She pointed her fork in Queenie's direction, talking with a tilt of her head. "So, what's your story, Queenie? Who popped your _chocolate-covered cherry?"_

"No one yet. She's a virgin." Nan answered for the other girl. She leaned over the table with a devilish grin on her face. Corey raised a brow at the encounter, knowing that they had just had a conversation about invading each other's privacy and how it shouldn't be done. She returned her attention to the group before her, unintentionally talking over the other girls.

"Shut up, Nan. I'm saving myself." Queenie dropped a hand down against her fork in defeat, her bottom lip slipping between her teeth as her nose twitched slightly. Madison sighed, placing her fork back down on her plate as Corey's voice echoed against the walls slightly.

"I thought we had a clear discussion about staying out of other people's heads yesterday, Nan." The redhead raised a brow at the youngest witch, her hand instinctively moving to a protective position over Madison's thigh as she heard the wheeled cart come to a stop. Nan nodded, her head dropping to look at her hands as she pursed her lips.

When the sound of a plate touching the table caught her attention, Madison reached out a hand to pass the assorted breakfast foods to Corey. The redhead's brow furrowed as she looked up to see Spalding's face bruised and scratched. He looked as though he had been hit or walked into one of the decorative sconces. Though she assumed he had just injured himself unintentionally, her guard remained up.

"What happened to you?" Madison let out a laugh, her brow furrowed at the man in front of her. He let out a _hrumph_ as he narrowed his eyes at the girl. He placed a plate of food in front of Queenie, leaving Madison's plate setting as the last to be passed off.

Spalding stood taller, his hands clenched against the handle of the food cart as he squared his shoulders. Corey's brows flew upwards as she sat up, her neck craning slightly to look over the back of Madison's head. The blonde looked at the man with an arched brow as she leaned her elbows against the table.

Spalding wheeled the food cart behind Madison. He leaned over her to place her plate in front of her, pausing to inhale the scent of her shampoo. Going the extra mile, he let a hand graze her hair. Madison froze, the panic in her eyes visible. Corey watched the man with a burning glare, her hand hovering over her steak knife as her jaw rolled in anger.

As Spalding's hand caressed Madison's throat, the blonde forgot how to breathe. Her mouth fell open as he allowed himself to apply pressure. Madison's eyes searched the redhead's face frantically. Corey's fingers wrapped around the handle of the blade as she launched from her seat.

She pointed the knife at the scraggly man, knocking her plate onto the floor and causing it to shatter as she moved. Corey threw Spalding off the actress, pushing him back against the food cart with her elbow. Spalding's hands immediately flew upwards in surrender as the serrated edge of the steak knife pressed against his skin.

She fought with the man, pushing him farther away from the table of girls. The coven watched with hushed whispers dancing around the table. The food cart fell over, causing the dishes to clatter against the floor. Heels quickly clicked down the hallway, heel-to-toe, as the commotion unfolded in the room.

Madison swallowed hard, her eyes locking onto Corey as the girl continued to fight against the man who had grabbed her by the throat. Corey's features softened as she caught a glimpse of Madison startling once more. Madison quickly relaxed, which caused the redhead to let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding in. She shoved Spalding against the wall, freezing as the sound of Fiona's voice filled the room.

"Hey!" Fiona called out. Her echoing voice broke up the chatter between the girls at the table as she crossed the threshold. The redhead noticed the small scratch on Spalding's neck as she returned her attention to the man in front of her. She smirked, her eyes traveling from the spot where the blade pressed against his neck

"What the hell is going on here?" Fiona leaned against the wall next to Corey, her eyes locked on the redhead. Madison's eyes locked on the trio as she swallowed hard, quickly folding her hands in her lap.

"Spalding grabbed Madison," Queenie spoke in a low volume. Her fear for the situation at hand only showed in her voice. Fiona's brows flew upwards, her eyes flicking between the redhead and the man she had pinned against the wall.

"If you ever even _think_ about touching her again, I'll do a lot more than just nick your skin." She spat through her teeth, her nose twitching as she stepped back from the butler. She handed the steak knife to the Supreme as Madison's pulled at her forearm. The blonde tugged her back, away from the table where the rest of the coven sat with wide eyes.

Corey wanted to ask if Madison was okay, but one look at the girl's face told her all she needed to know. The blonde was panicked, her heart threatening to escape her chest with each beat. The redhead wrapped an arm around her and pulled her out of the room as quickly as she could.


	9. nine

MADISON SAT ON HER BED IN THE ROOM SHE SHARED WITH ZOE, her knees pulled up against her chest as she stared out the window. She hadn't really been looking at anything specific; the window was a great excuse to use when she unintentionally zoned out. With her roommate gone for the day, it was much easier for the blonde to lose track of time. Her hand stroked Ophelia's back without thought, the repetitive motion calming her with each passing. She jumped at the sound of knuckles rapping against her door frame, pulled from the cloudy haze of thoughts that had previously occupied her mind.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Corey mumbled softly as she looked down at her feet with a shake of her head. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay." When she looked back up she watched the blonde with a furrowed brow and slight squint of her eyes. Madison clenched her jaw, her nostrils flared out as she let out a sharp exhale.

"I'm fine," the girl spat in response. "Absolutely no reason to worry about me." She hadn't intended to come off so harshly, clearing her throat as she rested her chin on her knees. She let one hand rest with her palm facing upward across the tops of her feet as she used the other to wave the girl off. She refused to look up at the redhead, instead opting to look down at her toes, flexing them anxiously. Corey continued into the room cautiously, her hands moving into her pockets. The closer she moved towards the blonde the more apparent it was that Madison had been crying.

"Mads, you don't have to put up a front, it's just me." Corey spoke softly. She took a seat at the foot of Madison's bed and tucked one foot underneath herself. She placed a palm against the bedsheets to support her weight, leaning to the side with a tilted head.

"What's bothering you, Montgomery?" She asked. She reached out with the hand that wasn't holding her upright to tuck a stray hair behind the blonde's ear. Madison sniffled in response, pulling her chin from her knees as she recoiled slightly. She pressed her nose against the divot created between her kneecaps.

"It's nothing," the blonde shook her head. Her gaze moved from her own toes to Corey's hand that rested beside her. The redhead's other hand lingered near Madison's ear for a moment. She wanted ever so slightly to caress the girl's face, to wipe away the tears that stained her cheeks. Instead, Corey let her hand fall to the girl's side, finding its home in the ditch of Madison's arm as the blonde took in a shaky breath.

"Is this about what happened earlier?" Corey asked. Her brow furrowed slightly. "With Spalding?" Madison could feel her lower lip quivering, unable to clench her jaw hard enough to make it stop. Corey rubbed small circles into the girl's upper arm. The blonde struggled to hold back her tears as she inhaled, her chest rattling ever so slightly. Madison swallowed hard, nodding. Her chin returned to its place upon her knees, her bottom lip trembling as she tried to regain enough composure to speak again.

A dry chuckle escaped through her teeth as she tilted her head. She squeezed her eyes shut as her words found their meek cadence in the silent yet comfortable void that surrounded the two witches in the stark white room that lacked its own personality.

One could argue that it felt more like a rehab facility than the last one Madison had found herself admitted to, but she kept that thought to herself. She bit the inside of her cheek, her bottom lip jutting out slightly as she sucked the corner of it between her teeth. With a slow exhale through her nose, she let her thoughts pour out.

"My mother put me to work ever since I could talk. I hated it." Madison shrugged. Her voice was quiet but full of emotion. Instead of talking about what had happened at the frat party and how what Spalding had done made her feel, she talked about her mother. Usually, she refused to talk about the woman. She chewed on her bottom lip slightly as she tried to find the right words to say.

"It's hard to stop when you're the only one in your family making money, you know?" Corey nodded, pulling herself slightly closer to the other girl as she continued. She tucked her other foot underneath herself and squeezed the hand that had previously rest on Madison's arm in between her own knees, using it to balance herself against the edge of the bed.

"She was always angry with me about one thing or another; something that wasn't within my control. It started out with raised voices and arguments over a missed audition because _she_ had slept through alarms, neglecting to wake me. Or a physical altercation for not getting a role I had auditioned for." Madison let out a long sigh before reaching outward, her fingers tracing the outline of Corey's hand that rest against the bed.

"Once she had started with the drugs and alcohol, we fought over things as minuscule as the color of the sky. She would throw things and use force to _prove her point — _that I couldn't manage to do anything right, and she had to clean up the mess I left behind in the tsunami of emotions that poured out of me each and every time." She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head as Corey sat and listened quietly. When Madison stopped tracing her knuckles, the redhead lifted her index finger and placed it on top of the blonde's hand to let her know she was still listening.

"It was one thing to blame me as the reason for her drug abuse, but it was a whole other thing to point fingers when the police arrived and let her only child take the blame for her own illegal escapades." The blonde paused. She squeezed her eyes shut tighter for a moment as she took a deep breath.

"That was the last time I talked to her," Madison admitted quietly. She slowly opened her gold eyes to meet Corey's green ones. "When you bailed me out, and I met your mom." Corey struggled to keep the frown from forming across her lips. She tried her hardest to keep her features light and welcoming so that the blonde wouldn't close herself off from the world again.

"Stevie taught me what having a mom was really like," Madison let the tears flow down her cheeks. A slight sniffle escaped as she finally gave in to her body's yearning to let out the emotions she had been bottling in for so long.

_And you taught me what it was like to feel loved_, she thought. She kept what she truly wanted to say to herself. She knew that Nan would be able to hear her, spilling the information to anyone who cared enough to listen, but in that moment Madison didn't care. For once in her life, she was opening up to someone that she cared about and that's all that mattered to her.

"I was envious for a while, that you had someone that cared so much about you, until she started treating me the same way. She's the closest thing I've had to an actual _parent_ in a really long time."

"Oh, Maddie," Corey squeaked. She pulled her hand from between her own knees to reach out and pull the other girl into her chest. "If I had known sooner—" Madison cut her off, shaking her head. She looked up, wrapping her delicate arms around the other girl.

"You couldn't have known," the blonde's watery eyes said everything they needed to in that moment. "I've never talked to anyone about it, and I try not to think about it. Not only because Nan can hear what everyone in the direct vicinity is thinking, but because it wasn't a _good_ experience and it doesn't put me in the greatest headspace." She blinked back her tears, clearing her throat. "I'd like it if we didn't talk about this any further." Corey nodded. She used her thumb to brush the hairs that had clung to Madison's face out of the way.

"In that case, why don't you go change," the redhead suggested with a sad smile. She knew not to push the blonde. Whatever the girl needed to say, she'd say it when she felt the time was right to do so. "There's a place close by I want to take you to. Maybe it'll help take your mind off of things." Madison nodded. She swallowed hard as she leaned back to take in a deeper breath.

* * *

"I didn't think they still had these places." Madison smiled wide. She tugged at the denim jacket over her bare shoulders as she leaned against a waist-height wall. Her black lace bustier corset top was tucked into her whitewashed denim jeans. It was secured with a black leather belt, cuffed at the bottom of the pant legs to show off the black cowboy-style boots with the pointed toe and chunky heels—_which she would neither confirm nor deny came from Corey's closet_. The sound of the arcade machines behind them caused her to whirl in the direction of the noise.

Skee-ball. Pinball. Claw machines. Street Fighter. Wall-to-wall prizes. The lights flashed from the miniature arcade in the corner, the teen near the rental skates watching with a raised brow as he ran a microfiber cloth across the counter in front of him. The blonde looked around with a sense of wonder and excitement that could only be compared to a kid in a candy store. Madison returned her attention to the redhead next to her as she heard her voice pulling her back, the colorful lights from overhead occasionally panning across her features.

"They don't, really. Not anymore," Corey spoke loudly in order to be heard over the 80s power ballad that played through the sound system. Her head turned towards the blonde as her eyes watched the crowd of people roller-skating on the other side of the wall they both leaned against. She smiled, shaking her head as Madison looked at her with a smirk, her eyes soft.

"Only a few left across the country; a dying breed, much like ourselves." Corey's eyes finally trailed back to look at Madison. The blonde pursed her lips and looked to her hands, fidgeting with the sleeves of her denim jacket. _Don't let the others see you being so soft,_ she thought to herself; Madison Montgomery's image was not one of being kindhearted and heart-eyed.

She tried to hide the smirk on her lips but the redhead caught the bounce in her step as she shifted her weight. Corey placed a gentle hand on Madison's back and pinched the jacket with her thumb and forefinger, tugging the girl back as a light chuckle left her lips.

"Come on, let's get you skates," she walked backwards, watching the blonde as she cautiously moved toward the rental counter behind them. Madison pushed off the small dividing wall with a smirk. Her bottom lip quickly slipped between her teeth as she nodded her head.

By the time she reached the rental counter, Corey already had skates ready for them. Madison waited while Corey placed their things in a locker and found a seat near the opening to the roller rink. They couldn't help but bump into each other while they laced up their shoes, Madison's bare shoulder brushing against Corey's loose, weathered, rock band crop top with frayed edges.

Each time their shoulders brushed ever so slightly, it caused them to share small glances; soft smiles; quiet laughs. Eventually, one would brush up against the other just to get the opposite girl to look over; to share a not-so-secret glance in public. They intertwined their pinkies as they entered the rink, and Madison could feel the beet-red heat on her cheeks; the fear of wandering eyes realizing who they were. The truth was, within the age group they were surrounded by, Corey would be the first one to be recognized; her stature; her silhouette; her voice; all were reminiscent of her mother.

The girls unlinked their pinkies and Corey pivoted, skating backwards. She ran a hand across the blonde's side as she moved away, her fingers tracing the crevices between each corset bone as she pulled her hand back towards herself, giving the girl some space while still being able to keep an eye on her.

She couldn't hold in the laugh when she watched Madison struggle to maintain her balance. Once she felt confident, the actress stood taller and attempted a trick. The redhead pulled out her cellphone, recording the blonde as she struggled to skate while balancing on one foot. Madison started to fumble forward and Corey caught her without hesitation.

The blonde couldn't help but giggle as the musician helped her regain her balance. When the Fleetwood Mac song played through the sound system, Madison gasped. She pointed a finger to the redhead who rolled her eyes with a laugh. Corey began to skate around the blonde, singing to her at the opening of the first verse.

"So I'm back to the velvet underground. Back to the floor that I love; to a room with some lace and paper flowers." Madison threw her head back in laughter, her eyes following the redhead as she moved around her. "And it all comes down to you. Well, you know that it does. And lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice. Oh, and it lights up the night."

She made an attempt to mimic her mother's voice as well as she could, though it sounded more like a caricature which only made the blonde laugh more. "I see your bright eyes, and it all comes down to you. Lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice, and it all comes down to you."

Corey moved ahead with a laugh, shaking her head, and Madison quickly caught up. The blonde wrapped her arms around the redhead's waist as she placed her chin against the slightly taller girl's shoulder. They hummed along to the music that played before Madison pulled away, holding Corey's hand as she made an awkward attempt at skating backwards. Knowing that her rendition of the Queen song that played over the speakers wouldn't have been as smooth on the ears as the redhead had been, the blonde smiled wide as she lip-synched.

_This thing called love, I just can't handle it._

_This thing called love, I must get 'round to it._

_I ain't ready, crazy little thing called love._

Corey placed a hand against her heart, a mocking pout on her lips as she watched Madison struggle to dance in her skates.

_I gotta be cool, relax, get hip and get on my tracks._

_Take a back seat, hitch-hike, and take a long ride on my motorbike_

_until I'm ready— ready Freddie._

_Crazy little thing called love._

The blonde couldn't help but feel like the DJ had the power to read her mind, knowing that the song portrayed exactly how she was feeling in the moment. Corey shook her head as she let out a laugh. She let go of Madison's hand, skating past the other girl to attempt to pick up some speed and lap her. Watching the redhead, a devious grin flashed across Madison's face.

She sped up, wobbling slightly as she tried to maintain her balance. She grabbed Corey's wrists as she moved closer, picking up speed the longer her strides became. Madison looked up, her fingers gently latched around the redhead's forearms. With a squeal, she used the other girl as a slingshot, coasting around the curve of the rink just as wobbly as she was at a normal speed. The taller girl let out a gasp as she struggled to remain on her feet.

"Oh, it is _on_, Montgomery," Corey fumbled backwards, scoffing. She watched as one hand flew up towards Madison's face to mask the giggles that erupted from her throat. Shaking her head, she regained her balance before quickly picking up speed. She swore she could hear a faint _'oh, shit,'_ coming from Madison but brushed it off as her own imagination.

The blonde squealed once more, this time struggling to gain distance between herself and the witch that followed her with a burning intensity. Corey quickly caught up, grabbing the belt loop of Madison's jeans as they moved. She pulled them both to the outer wall of the skating rink. They skidded to a stop and Corey quickly moved a hand to the side of Madison's face, pulling the blonde in for a kiss.

Madison pulled away, knowing it wasn't the time or the place for it. Her fear of getting caught kept her from giving in to the other witch even though she truly wanted to. Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth before she pushed off the half-wall and quickly took off with a squeal.

Corey scoffed, using her hand to push off the wall behind her and follow the blonde. They chased each other for a few laps before the smell of fresh pretzels and popcorn caused the shorter witch's stomach to grumble, having left the academy without lunch in an attempt to avoid Spalding. She slowed her stride, nearing an opening in the waist-level wall that they could exit through.

"Oh, _shit_," she muttered. The sentiment came from Corey's own lips as she struggled to slow down. She grew closer to the Montgomery girl at a faster pace than she had anticipated. Her arms waved in circles at her sides in an attempt to break her speed. Madison turned with a furrowed brow, not having realized that the redhead was so close to her when she stopped short.

When the two girls collided, collapsing against the barrier wall behind Madison, they erupted into a fit of laughter. The redhead stood up, extending a hand to the blonde, which she eagerly took. "You alright?" She asked. Immediately, she earned another laugh from the other girl in response.

"I'm fine," Madison's voice bubbled up from her throat in a giggle. Her words were softer than they had been earlier in the day. She brushed the dust from her back pockets, turning to check and make sure she had cleared it all.

"Just hungry," she smiled. She turned back to catch the redhead staring at her with a light smirk. This time it was Corey's turn to look away, her tongue running across her bottom lip as a sheepish grin accompanied a light pink blush across her cheeks.

"Well then let's get you some snacks," she looked back up at the blonde. Her head tilted to the side as she used a hand to steady the other girl, her other hand still locked with Madison's. The blonde nodded once, leading the other witch to the concessions.

Before they could make it all the way to the counter, a small group of girls ran out of the arcade calling out Madison's name. The witches reluctantly let go of each other's hands, remembering that they were out in public. The blonde turned in the direction of the small voices beckoning her. Corey stood back, her arms crossed over her chest as she leaned against a pillar, watching the exchange with a soft smile on her face.

Madison dropped down to one knee, a small girl bouncing around in front of her waving a sharpie and a phone case in her direction. She looked back to Corey with a spark in her eyes as she interacted with the group around her. It wasn't long before the girls were able to get back to their previous task at hand, collecting snacks for the actress.

The redhead struggled to explain to the kid behind the counter that she wanted a soft pretzel, a combination between the volume of the noise in the building and the _celebrities_ in front of them. When the girl finally understood and turned to grab what was asked for, Corey turned to look at the blonde beside her.

"You looked pretty good out there." The redhead stuck her hands into her back pockets as she leaned against the snack counter. She watched as Madison stuck her thumb nail between her teeth. Corey's voice pulled her from her internal debate between twizzlers or gummy bears, causing her to turn in the other girl's direction.

"Yeah? My back skate could use a little work, _but,_ uh..." she paused, trying to keep her flirtatious smirk from taking over her full face. "You didn't look too bad yourself." She smiled up at the redhead, crossing her arms over her middle as the teen employee returned with Corey's pretzel. Madison pointed to the gummy bears, deciding that it was easier than dealing with the noise fiasco all over again. "Thanks, by the way. I needed this."

"Everyone needs a break sometimes," Corey popped a small piece of pretzel into her mouth before digging her wallet out of her pocket to pay for their snacks and shared soft drink. The blonde nodded in response as she pulled the gummy bears and cup from the counter before stepping out of the redhead's way.

The girls walked back to the seats they sat in previously as Madison struggled to open her bag of gummy bears. She made an attempt to balance the cup in the crook of her elbow while simultaneously struggled to tear the bag open without causing the snacks and drink to spill everywhere.

The redhead placed her soft pretzel in her lap, brushing off the light coating of butter that clung to her fingers against her black jeans. She reached over with a light laugh and opened the bag of candy for the blonde. They shared their snacks, the Montgomery girl making a game out of tossing gummy bears into the air for her girlfriend to catch in her mouth.

They tried to see who could catch the candy from different heights, leading to gummy bears bouncing off Corey's nose or Madison's forehead which caused a fit of laughter to erupt from the blonde's throat. Another group approached the couple as they laughed at each other, this time mostly male.

"Hey, you girls look like you're lonely," a tall blonde boy grinned down at them as he spoke, an open plastic bottle of cola in hand. Corey frowned in confusion and turned to look up at him, pulling her attention from Madison. She felt a gummy bear bounce off the side of her head, a sheer sign of the other girl trying to quietly gain her attention back as the other boy moved to sit in the open seat next to the actress.

"We're fine, but thank you," she denied his offer politely. She picked up the grease covered napkin from her lap where her pretzel once was and shook the salt onto the floor, drying off her fingertips as she raised a brow at him. He looked taken aback by how immediate and firm her rejection was. His brow furrowed as he fumbled with his words, causing a voice from the other side of Corey to chime in.

"Oh, uh, are you sure? You just, well, you girls seemed a little bored over here by yourself." His friend, a stocky brunette with a thick Cajun accent, reached over in an attempt to brush a stray hair out of Madison's face. She used the back of her hand to deflect him, a light scoff leaving her lips as he let out a chuckle before speaking again.

"Ooh, _feisty_. I like it." A disgusted groan left Corey's lips as she looked over at the boy, the blonde with the floppy hair still looming over her. Somehow, the day continued to devolve into creepy men thinking they have earned the right to invade their personal bubble.

"We're actually here together, but thank you so, _so_ much for your concern." Madison swallowed hard as she tilted her head, looking up at the boy who had made an attempt to touch her. Her eyes were tiny golden daggers, causing the brunette to stutter. He placed the toothpick that he had held in his opposite hand between his teeth as he raised his brows.

"Oh, so," he turned his attention to Corey and ran his thumb over his lower lip. "Are you two _friends_ or something?"

"Yeah, _something_," Corey replied. She rolled her eyes as she sat taller in her seat. Madison placed a hand on the redhead's thigh, her grip tight and protective against the two boys they couldn't seem to shake off. The brunette sniffled, scrunching his nose as Madison's gaze refused to leave his face.

"Scurry along now, _bro_," the blonde's grip tightened against Corey's thigh. She tensed as a slow stream of blood dribbled down from one of the boy's nostrils. "Jesus, did you have a stroke?" Madison scoffed. She leaned back against the redhead to keep the drip from touching her in any way.

She looked away, her eyes moving from her girlfriend to the blonde that stood above her. He remained still, looking dumbfounded over both the firm rejection from the girls and his friend's sudden predicament. As soon as she wasn't looking, the brunette's hand flew up towards his face. He fumbled his words in a panic. The blonde with the floppy hair groaned as he reached over and pulled his friend away. Corey and Madison shared a glance, both girls confused, before the actress let out a laugh once more.


	10. ten

COLD SHEETS STUCK TO WARM SKIN. THE BED WAS EMPTY, which was unusual for an early morning at the academy. The sheets on Madison's side rested neatly, tucked against the pillow that sat with a lonely impression of the back of the blonde's head. Usually, Corey would have to wake an oversleeping blonde when the girl hadn't woke early to check her heart murmur, but this day was different.

The redhead was sure that there was nothing scheduled for the early morning; no morning meeting with Cordelia; no health check-up; no group breakfast; no _last minute adventure_ with Fiona. She groaned, running a hand down her face as she sat up, her eyes scanning the room for the other girl. She sat upright, listening for the sound of the shower running in the bathroom on the other side of her bedroom wall but only found the silence that accompanied an empty room.

She threw the covers off herself as she meandered into the closet to get dressed for the day, her eyes squinting as the light that crept into the white room reflected off the walls, making it more difficult for the redhead to see. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes for a moment before fumbling through her closet.

As she gathered her clothes, she wondered if her outing with Madison the day before was all a dream; an elaborate ruse her mind had made up in her slumber. She let out a chuckle as she got dressed; the pile of Madison's clothes in the corner of the closet gave her all the reassurance that she needed to know the date they shared hadn't been a trick of her mind.

On her way out of her bedroom, she grabbed the pile of papers that sat on a table near the door. The pale yellow sticky note that sat on top of the packet fastened together with a clip had the word _Corinna_ crudely scribbled in black sharpie across it. The redhead's name was underlined multiple times, a sign that whatever was in the packet that was gifted to her in her sleep contained urgent information. She walked through the halls, her eyes rolling as she contemplated whether or not she even wanted to read through the information thrust upon her.

She took one glance at the front page and immediately realized it was a massive 'to-do list' left by Cordelia. Things the headmistress should have done on her own throughout the week now designated to another as 'appointments' and 'time with Hank'seemed to have filled the older witch's schedule. Why Cordelia fell for that man, Corey could never understand.

The redhead shuttered at the thought of having to be in the same room as him; the negative energy that radiated off of the Headmistress' husband always put her in a sour mood. Corey entered her office, her brow furrowed as she continued to flip through the packet of things Cordelia had given her to take care of while she was away for the week.

She couldn't grasp the idea of how the Headmistress expected her to get everything done by herself. Both witches knew that the younger girls weren't going to be around to assist in taking care of the massive array of daily tasks. She wondered if she should pass the list on to Spalding, knowing that it would be easier to just delegate the packet to others.

She shook off the thought as she heard rummaging coming from the corner of her office. Where her bookshelves were once tidy and organized sat a frustrated Madison, scouring the shelves for something particular. What she was looking for, Corey wasn't sure. She took in the sight of the blonde like a breath of fresh air, a feeling she knew all too well washing over her in a matter of seconds.

* * *

_Corey sat with her legs crossed, facing the back of an amp. She tried, and failed, to figure out where the wires were supposed to be connected. She knew borrowing her mother's equipment for a charity event wasn't the best idea, but it was all the band had to work with for the time being. She huffed, tossing her head back to look up at the ceiling as she felt her hood slip off the top of her head to rest against her shoulders._

_"Can I help you?" A soft voice grabbed her attention. The redhead to slowly composed herself. She knew that the last thing she needed was to snap at someone because her bandmates couldn't care enough to set up their own equipment._

_"You look like you're having some trouble." Corey held in the scoff she wanted to so badly allow to escape her lips. She didn't want to be known as 'the rock band diva' by whoever was just trying to lend a helping hand. The redhead turned to respond but, the moment her green eyes met the other girl's gold ones, she lost the ability to speak. Her mouth became dry, taking the other girl in as she felt the heat creep up her neck and flow across her cheeks._

_She finally understood the words her mother had told her time and time again:_

_"You'll know you've found that person when you see it._

_When you're in a crowded room and you see a kind of person,_

_and your heart skips a beat— backflips, even;_

_and the world around you seems to be ablaze in that moment;_

_and you can't find the words to say even though they're right on the tip of your tongue;_

_and you feel like you're gasping for air even though you're breathing perfectly fine._

_That's when you'll know, Little Bird."_

_Corey couldn't hold in the chuckle that escaped her lips as she felt the skin around her eyes crinkle. The smile that crept across her features faltered slightly as she realized that this blonde that she had never met was kneeling extremely close to her and awaiting a verbal response. What felt like an eternity of silence between them had been only a slight pause in conversation. A beat of a drum in the tempo of the song that they shared in their quiet moment together._

_The redhead let her tongue dip out to wet her lips quickly as she moved the cord to the amp from one hand to the other. She cleared her throat as she shook her head, the loose curls that framed her face outside of her messy up-do bouncing as she moved._

_"It's alright," she laughed as she looked back to the girl who dared to distract her from her work. She looked at the amp as she spoke again, needing to break the minimal eye contact she held with the mystery girl. "It really shouldn't seem so difficult, it's just not my personal equipment." She shrugged, turning to look at the other girl again as the blonde let out a laugh._

_"Oh, good, I was hoping that'd be your answer. I honestly don't know anything about any of this stuff." She blushed. Her hand moved in a circular motion in the general direction of what Corey had been working on previously. She looked down at the glass in her other hand as she admitted the truth with a shake of her head. Her shoulder-length blonde hair brushed against her heart-shaped face as she moved._

_"It was all a sort of ruse to be able to talk to you." Her tongue darted out, wetting her lips as her eyes locked onto Corey's once again. "I saw you walk in through the back room from my spot at the bar," she turned her upper body as she pointed across the room. Her lips tugged upward on one side as her eyes remained locked on the redhead. Her smile to became slightly lopsided. She returned her free hand to her lap anxiously as she turned her shoulders back in the other girl's direction._

_"Something was nagging at me, telling me that if I didn't take my chance I'd never get to speak to you and I'd regret it." The wine red lipstick pulled the redhead's attention to the girl's lips for a fraction of a second. The blonde held out her free hand and Corey took it quickly, a little too eager to place her hand against a complete stranger's. She swore she could feel a physical spark when the blonde took her hand, but she brushed it off as a trick of the mind; her mother's words getting to her head._

_"Madison Montgomery, movie star," the blonde chirped as she shook the musician's hand. A look of regret flashed over her features as she realized she had added her title to the end of her name as if she was trying to impress someone— anyone— at the industry party full of actors and musicians. She cleared her throat, shaking her head as she looked down at her feet. She let out an awkward laugh as she focused on her red and green Markarian dress for a moment._

_"I'm sorry," she said softly, looking back up at the redhead. "Industry thing, force of habit." Corey let out a chuckle, not fully realizing that neither girl truly wanted to pull their hand away, each yearning the touch of the other._

_"Corey Luna," she replied. Her slight smile grew larger as she felt the sparks between them growing by the second. She swallowed hard, finally letting go of Madison's hand to return her attention to the project in front of her. "So, what's got a 'movie star' like you so interested in the girl setting up the band's equipment?" She asked, finding the correct spots for the wires and plugging them in. Madison leaned back on her heels, a slight smirk on her lips as she watched the redhead succeed in finishing the set-up needed for the impending sound-check._

_"Awe, come on," Madison giggled. She raised a brow at the other girl in a flirtatious manner. "I wouldn't call Daphne Blake 'just the girl setting up the band's equipment'." She smiled to herself, looking away for a fraction of a second before looking back at Corey. The fear that maintaining eye contact would set her world on fire around her caused her to look away._

_"You saw that?" The redhead laughed, her hands moving to her lap as she turned to face the blonde in front of her. She'd admit that her cast-mates weren't very quiet about their roles in the upcoming production, but her manager wanted to keep her part in the series a surprise until the first trailer aired publicly. She'd been cropped out of the photos on set that her cast-mates shared, kept out of any promotional photos, as well as having been advised to stay out of any social media take-overs until the official trailer was made public._

_"How could I not?" The blonde asked. Her tone peaked in a flirtatious manner as she slowly moved closer to the other girl. She pursed her lips, looking down at her dress again as she ran her hand across the tiny turquoise sequins to calm her nerves._

_"I didn't think the trailer was out yet." Corey laughed. She rested her elbow against her knee to lean closer to the other girl, wanting to take in her features from a closer perspective. She placed her chin in her palm as Madison spoke again, watching as the girl continued to avoid eye contact. She quietly hoped that the blonde was feeling the same odd connection between them; that they both felt as if even just looking at one another could cause their world to implode._

_"It's not," Madison smirked. She picked at the sequins on her gown as she blushed. The redhead knew it wasn't. The only public hints that she had the role were that her band played the show's theme song— which had no connection to the role on its own— and that her voice could be heard in a short teaser trailer that had released only a few days before. "I may have talked some 'industry friends' into letting me see it early." The blonde looked back up at Corey with a smirk, which quickly became a toothy grin accompanied by a soft giggle._

_"Hmm, sneaky, Miss Montgomery," the redhead scrunched her nose. A laugh left her smirking lips as she took in the other girl's body language. A light tap of knuckles against the amplifier behind her caused Corey to sit up taller, turning her head to see the scrawny boy with floppy ash colored locks._

_"Corey, sound check in five," Sam, the band's drummer, echoed the orders of their manager who leaned against the brick wall behind him with his arms crossed over his chest. The girl's green eyes found their way to the shadowed man, only able to make out the scolding brows. It was a sheer sign the older man wasn't happy with the fact that the musician was fraternizing with the partygoers instead of setting up the equipment._

_"Thank you, five," Corey chirped back sarcastically as she watched the figure in the distance shake its head. She clenched her jaw for a fraction of a second before relaxing slightly, letting out a quiet sigh. She couldn't stand her manager, but she also didn't want her conversation with the blonde to end._

_"On that note," she turned back to the actress and reached out her hand, helping Madison onto her feet as they stood together. Again, she felt the sparks leave her fingertips as their hands touched. She grabbed her phone from the top of the amp as she pulled her hand away. "I should get back with the band and get ready."_

_She moved one hand to her shoulder to pull up her hood but stopped when she felt Madison's fingers gently tap against her wrist that brushed against her hip lightly. The lace of her dress grazed against her pulse point gently as her heart rate quickened._

_"Wait," the blonde swallowed hard, mustering up all the confidence she could in her small, frail body. Her hand fell to her side as she held her glass next to her face. Corey held her breath unintentionally, each beat of her heart a threat that it would soon burst from her ribcage and spill out onto the floor before her. "Can I borrow this?" Madison pointed at Corey's phone, her tongue jutting out to wet her lips anxiously, "I misplaced mine."_

_She held her breath. She waited for a response as she tilted her head to the side to look up at the redhead that now stood much taller than she did. The small stage the musician stood upon added to their already noticeable height difference. Madison swallowed hard as she looked the girl up and down again, her bottom lip slipping between her teeth as she anxiously twisted back and forth._

_Corey passed her phone off with a nod and Madison quickly took it into her own hands. She opened up a new contact and programmed her own number into the redhead's phone. Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth as she called herself._

_Her phone began to ring, tucked into her maroon colored velvet belt tied around the center of her striped dress. She smirked, looking back up at the redhead in front of her as she ended the call and passed the phone back to its owner. _

* * *

"Corinna?" Madison's voice shook the witch from her thoughts, pulling her focus back into her office. She clenched the packet of papers in her hand, remembering why she had wandered in that general direction in the first place.

"Hmm?" Corey hummed. She blinked quickly as her eyes found the blonde moving towards her, a concerned look etched into the girl's features. The Montgomery girl folded the paper she had found while rummaging through the girl's things, making it possible to hold the large piece of parchment in one hand as she moved.

"You okay?" Madison asked. Her free hand reached out and fluttered near the redhead's cheek before finding it's place in the crook of her neck. "You zoned out _hard_." Her features were soft, her brows furrowed as her gold eyes searched Corey's face. Her hand crept up the side of the girl's neck, her thumb making it's nest in the divot between the redhead's chin and bottom lip. The blonde ran the pad of her thumb against Corey's bottom lip slowly as she let her shoulders relax, the initial spark from their touch subsiding to a dull hum.

"Yeah," she shook her head, swallowing hard before she moved her hand up to wrap her fingers around the smaller girl's wrist gently. "I was just thinking about something and must've gotten lost in my own head." Corey let a small smile creep across her face slowly as Madison's concerned features relaxed. The blonde nodded in response, her bottom lip slipping in between her teeth as she smirked up at the other girl, the spark in her eyes causing the redhead to raise a questioning brow.

"Can I borrow this?" Madison twirled as her hand dropped to her side, an innocent tilt to her head only adding to her demeanor. She waved the folded paper near her face quickly as she spoke. "I'll put it back where I found it when I'm done. I just want to pay Zoe back... for dealing with that _asshole_ from the party." She batted her eyelashes as she looked up at the taller girl, the grins on both of their faces matching each other's intensity.

"Mmhmm, sure," Corey hummed as she leaned down to kiss the other girl. It didn't last long as Madison took a step back, her mind set on other things. Corey sucked her bottom lip in as she watched the other girl move excitedly. She was somehow suddenly back to the chipper disposition she'd had before Zoe arrived at the academy just a week before.

"You're a lifesaver, babe." The blonde bounced as she moved to leave the office, making an attempt to get out of the room as fast as she possibly could before Corey could ask questions. She was surprised she managed to get the other girl to agree to letting her borrow the parchment without even knowing what it was. She wasn't going to stick around and risk getting her cover blown. After all, using a 'restricted' spell could get both witches in trouble with the council.

"Just be careful," Corey sighed. She looked back down at the massive list she needed to venture through on her own. She began to flip through the pages as she spoke. "I'd rather not have to deal with another set of detectives sticking their noses where they don't belong."

"No promises." Madison placed a chaste kiss against Corey's cheek before leaving the redhead's office. Her sights were set on finding Zoe and dragging her out on a _second_ adventure. This time, hopefully, would involve fewer casualties than the last.

"She loves you, you know," Fiona's voice caused the redhead to jump, her focus having been on the packet of chores in her hands. "She's just afraid of admitting it." Corey turned to face the Supreme in the doorway, her brows arching up towards her hairline. She thought about asking the woman how she thought she knew the Montgomery girl so well after only having read though her file and never spending any time alone with the blonde.

"Anyone ever teach you to make people aware of your presence before you scare the shit out of them?" The redhead's voice cracked as she spoke. One hand flew into her hair as the other dropped to her side, causing the packet to bounce against her hip briefly. "Or, I don't know, stay out of someone else's personal business when your opinion _wasn't requested?"_ Fiona's hands flew up in surrender, a smug grin taking over her features. Corey was being defensive, which meant that the Supreme had found a weakness in her otherwise impenetrable armor.

"It's fine, I can tell when I'm overstepping my boundaries," she stepped back. Her head tilted slightly as her heels clicked. "I'll just see myself out." Corey rolled her eyes as she watched Fiona leave the room and wander down the hallway. Ahead of her, the front door slammed shut as Madison and Zoe left before anyone could question their outing.

The redhead wondered if she should have been more skeptical of Madison's motives or question what she had been planning before quickly shaking off the notion. She hoped that her eagerness to trust the actress wouldn't cause them to end in rough waters, no matter what the girl had planned.


	11. eleven

MADISON'S LEG JITTERED AS SHE DROVE. She battled herself on whether or not her good _intentions_ were truly a good _idea_ in the grand scheme of things. She brushed it off, clearing her throat to fill the void of silence in the car between herself and Zoe. She opened her mouth to tell the other girl that she could turn the radio on if she'd like, but immediately chose not to as she realized that they were coming up on their turn into the parking lot for the city morgue.

She pulled into the lot, parking her black 2013 Jaguar XKR across from the morgue's door with a safe enough distance that it wouldn't seem like anyone was inside the building. Quickly exiting the car, she spun her keys around her index finger as she sauntered across the parking lot. Zoe climbed out of the passenger side and took in her surroundings just as confused as she had been when the blonde had invited her out that morning.

"I was supposed to play a cat burglar in this movie once," Madison made small talk as she moved towards the door, trying to disrupt the silence between the two of them. "But the funding fell through." She shuffled through her bag, a small smirk on her face as she found what she was looking for. She stood in front of the door to the morgue and pulled her lock picking kit out of her purse.

"But not before I learned how to do this." Removing a set of lock picks, she hesitated for a moment before turning to Zoe. "Hold that," she handed the other girl the rest of her kit before jamming her lock pick into the door's lock. She fiddled with the positioning, grunting softly as she tried to find the right spot. As the door clicked open, she chuckled triumphantly.

"Go," Madison whispered as she pulled the now unlocked door open, ushering the meek girl inside the building. She checked behind them, making sure they weren't followed or being watched— a habit she'd picked up on her adventures with Corey— as she followed Zoe inside. She turned on the industrial lights as the door creaked shut behind them, the loud click of metal against metal causing the newest addition to the coven to jump slightly. The blonde took the rest of her kit back from Zoe, placing her lock picks back into their respective spots in their pouch before placing the pouch back into her purse.

"Madison, what are we doing here?" Zoe tugged at her sweater anxiously as she watched the other girl move ahead of her. The actress removed her sunglasses, her tall boots clicking with an echo across the sterile brick floors.

"I'm gonna pay you back," Madison spoke matter-of-factly. Her eyes scanned the building with the mint green and dingy yellow tiles that covered the walls. She searched for anything reminiscent of a refrigeration system— drawers, fridges, cabinets, etc.— that the frat boys could have been stored in.

"Pay me back?" The brunette paused, still slightly confused. "For what?" She followed the blonde as she moved, stopping in her tracks when the shorter girl turned to face her.

"I know what you did for me, dealing with that asshole," Madison forced a slight smile as she pursed her lips. She was once again frustrated with having to discuss her trauma with another person. "And I know you couldn't have done it without Corinna allowing you to sneak off like she did, so I'm gonna return the favor."

She returned her attention to her purse over her shoulder, digging through it until she found the folded parchment that she'd taken from Corey's office. She held it out in front of her for Zoe to see. "Stole it out of Corey's stash." She smirked as the brunette pulled it from her hands, unfolding it only to furrow her brows at the weathered and aged parchment.

"Well, I mean," she fumbled with her words. She looked up at the tile ceiling as she bounced her head back and forth for a moment. "She knows I borrowed _something, _she just doesn't know _what_."

"It's in Latin... What is this?" Zoe shook her head as she looked up at the blonde, earning an eye roll from the other girl. It was as if the brunette couldn't add the situation together.

_Morgue plus old-latin-parchment equals..._

"Resurrection spell," Madison held in her groan, trying to understand how one person could be so naïve in a situation like this. "We're gonna bring your boyfriend back to life." Her devious smirk only grew as she took the spell back with two fingers. There was a spark in her eye as she turned back to the mission at hand: finding where the bodies were kept. She continued to wander throughout the building, groaning as she finally found the door to the large metal refrigeration system.

_"Bingo,"_ she hummed. Her lip bottom lip slipped between her teeth as she jogged over to the large, heavy door. It took a moment for her frail body to muster enough strength to pop the handle on the door downward and pull it open. She stepped through the plastic curtain that separated the sanitized portion of the morgue from the stench of death and decay inside the refrigerator. Her eyes grew wide at the sight before her and for a moment she considered telling Zoe not to follow her inside.

"Oh, _shit_," her voice dragged out. Her jaw dropped slightly as she took in the collections of limbs, torsos, and heads that rested on the seven separate steel tables in the large refrigerator. She held it together as she turned to Zoe, though her voice had a playful tone to it. "I guess that crash was even worse than I thought."

Madison dug through her purse again, this time to put the old spell back as to not misplace it. As the other girl pushed back the plastic, her mouth opened slightly in a combination of shock and horror. Ready to just get the job over with, Madison moved to the closest body bag and unzipped it. Zoe's attention immediately moved to the blonde, her eyes wide.

"No, don't!" Zoe begged, though it was too late. She took a step forward to place a pleading hand on Madison's shoulder, but at that point the blonde was already pulling the body bag open. Zoe gasped, her hands flying over her face as she stepped away, shielding herself from the sight of Kyle's head amongst a collection of other dismembered parts.

"He's still kind of cute, though." Madison winced slightly, realizing that the one innocent person out of the group could have had one of the most painful deaths at her own hand. Her hesitation was evident in her voice as she tried to make the best of the situation. She shrugged, a _what can you do_ pout jutting out for a fraction of a second.

"Madison!" Zoe cried out as she continued to stare at a corner of the metal wall. The blonde swallowed hard as she stepped away from the body bag, leaving it unzipped and pulled open as she took in the rest of the bags that surrounded them.

"Guess they're trying to figure out where everything goes," she took a few steps towards the next table, trying to see how everything was divided. If she could figure out the system they had in place, she could help Zoe put Kyle back together the right way. Suddenly, an idea popped into her head.

"Can we please just get out of here?" The brunette whispered. Her lip trembled as she tried to muster up her words without letting her tears fall. The blonde's face changed from a look of amusement to one of frustration as she turned to the other girl. She sucked in her cheek as she rolled her jaw, shifting her weight as she tilted her head.

"Zoe, look around this room," Madison stomped lightly. The click of her heel echoed throughout the room. "Okay, what do you see?" Zoe refused to look around and instead picked a piece of the tan colored brick flooring to look at. Madison moved her hands around as a signal to take in their surroundings.

"A tragedy?" The brunette shrugged, her arms crossed over her chest. "What... what do you—" Madison cut the other girl off with an eye roll.

"I see potential," she looked back at the tables covered in plastic behind them. She raised a single brow as Zoe finally looked up from the floor, her brows furrowed. "Look," Madison began to move around the room as she talked, pointing as she mentioned things. "Nice legs over here, a _great_ set of guns." She pulled the plastic on one of the tables upward to get a better look at the parts collected on the table in front of her.

"I wonder if he's a _show-er_ or a _grower_." She looked back at Zoe for a second as she raised her brow upward, a flirtatious smile gracing her lips. You couldn't tell from the outside, but she hated every second of being in that room. Looking at the faces that had once all melded into one gave her an ache she never knew she could feel. It was a dull pain at the base of her chest, almost as if her heart would cease to beat if she continued.

"What's your point, Madison?" Zoe snapped at the other girl. The tears that had previously threatened to fall began to slowly trickle down her cheeks. The blonde threw the tarp back down against the table. A quiet but much needed breath of relief escaped her lips as she turned to move towards the brunette.

"We take the best boy parts," she took a few steps forward. The same flirtatious smirk remained plastered on her lips as she spoke. "We attach them to Kyle's head," her arms swung at her sides slightly as she moved, closing the distance between herself and Zoe.

"And we build the perfect boyfriend," her sentence ended in a whisper as her bottom lip slipped between her teeth, her brows arching upward. She knew that, if Corey was around, she would be able to see right through her tactics. She was trying to use her body language and tone to her advantage.

"Is this just a joke to you?" Zoe stepped forward threateningly, her arms still crossed over her chest. _Okay,_ Madison thought. Her demeanor changed as she tried to shift tactics. _So maybe flirting **doesn't **__work with everyone._

"No, it's a challenge," Madison sighed. She dug through her purse once more to pull the old spell parchment back out. "And all we have to do is follow this recipe." She glared at the brunette for a moment as she pulled the spell from the actress' hands.

Madison let her hands drop to her side. She quickly turned away and moved back to the table she had stood at previously. She threw the plastic off, standing with her weight shifted to one side as she called back to the other girl. "Find me a saw." She looked back to the pile in front of her a slight tilt to her head as she scanned the potential inventory accumulated before her.

* * *

Madison wheeled out one of the metal tables, and Zoe followed behind her as she wrung her hands together anxiously. "You know, you could _help_ me move this table," she groaned as the wheel caught against a misaligned brick in the floor. She used her hip to free the wheel from where it had been stuck, letting out a pain filled hiss as she finally got the table to budge. "He's a lot heavier than you'd think."

Zoe rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest as she continued to follow behind the blonde. "You seem to be handling it just fine on your own," she muttered. She took slow mini-steps as she watched Madison continue to struggle to push the table-turned-cart across the uneven floor. The blonde pulled the cart to a stop as she approached the large metal slab table that would usually be used for an autopsy examination. She let out a huff, stopping to catch her breath for a moment.

Zoe shifted her weight behind her anxiously, which led to Madison's break being cut much shorter than she would have liked. She let out a frustrated groan as she turned to the cart and began transferring the mismatched Kyle puzzle pieces onto the table. The brunette helped her line them up, making sure each piece's jagged edge would line up with a little assistance here or there.

Madison took out a large leather needle and some yarn and began stitching the pieces together as well as she could, though she would admit that sewing wasn't her strong suit. "I need you to draw some symbols around the body," she focused on trying to get the stitching as perfectly as she could while she spoke. "They're on the back of the paper in the places that they need to be on the table."

"What if I mess it up?" Zoe asked quickly. She swallowed hard as she hesitated to move forward. She flexed her fingers in front of her, truly unsure of what she needed to do in that moment.

"Fucking hell, do I really need to do _everything_ around here?" Madison groaned. She put the needle down for a moment to nudge the brunette out of the way. She drew the symbols in their respective places across the table with the blood that covered her hands.

"At least light the candles at the corners of the table. My _fourteen_ _year old cousin_ is better at taking orders than you." She scoffed as she shook her head, returning her attention to the last of the stitching needed around Kyle's neck and chest. Zoe lit the three candles— white, red, and black— with a match from Madison's matchbox in her purse. She placed them accordingly around the makeshift altar, making sure the picture of Kyle that Madison had found on the internet wouldn't fall off the edge of the table.

"I need a bowl and some hair from his head," Madison sighed as she wiped her hands with a rag before quickly taking some scissors and cutting a chunk of Kyle's hair. Zoe took a step back to turn off the light, assuming that the spell needed to be completed in the dark. She returned with a small metal bowl, quickly placing it on the table in front of Madison.

The blonde pulled some test tubes from her purse and added them to the metal bowl as well— wormwood and horehound she'd stolen from Cordelia's greenhouse. "The salt," the blonde nodded, handing the vial to the other girl. "Draw a circle around his body with it." Zoe nodded, popping the cork top on the bottle before quickly tracing a circle around Kyle's new body.

Madison lit a match, gently tilting it into the metal bowl in front of her. She panicked with how quickly the bowl caught fire and pulled the match back towards her face to blow it out with a gasp. Grabbing a clean washcloth, she turned back to Zoe. "Okay," she spoke quietly, placing the towel over the bowl to snuff out the flames. She lifted the bowl up towards both of their faces, hesitating for a moment.

She had no idea what the spell would actually do. Whether it would bind the three of them, resurrect Kyle, or just cause the two of them to be haunted by the ghosts of the frat boys for the rest of their lives. She took a deep breath before slowly looking up at Zoe. "Breathe in the smoke."

Both girls took in a deep breath as soon as Madison removed the cloth. It took a few moments for anything to happen and the blonde questioned whether or not the spell was a dud. Suddenly, she felt the ripples of her nerves throughout her body. She assumed that Zoe had felt the same when she doubled over, both girls letting out a shrill scream. Zoe's cries rang out longer as Madison bit back the pain that rippled through her body. The pain that Kyle and each of the parts attached to him had felt as the bus exploded, she assumed.

"Give me your hand," Madison reached out. She flailed as she felt another ripple course through her body. She now understood why Corey had warned her against dark magic in the past, "Blood is our sacrament."

She ran a blade across Zoe's palm. She pressed it against the skin enough to be able to squeeze out the right amount of blood that they needed for the spell but not too much that it'd leave a scar. She dipped her finger into the puddle that quickly formed across Zoe's palm, knowing better than to use her own in a moment like this. As she chanted, she drew a pentagram on Kyle's chest.

"Colpriziana, offina alta nestra, fuero menut. Azazel, we submit to you, body and soul, the lord of the underworld, we offer you our obedience and everlasting devotion until death sanctifies this unholy union." Madison waved her hand over Kyle's chest, her doubts taking over in that moment. She had no idea what can of worms she could be opening with the spell she chose and was starting to panic, but she wouldn't let it show.

"Did we just marry the Devil? 'Cause I don't know if I'm down with that." Zoe's opposite hand landed on Madison's forearm in hesitation. It distracted the actress from making sure she summoned the correct spirit to the body before them. Before the blonde could say anything else, the pentagram that she had drawn in Zoe's blood caught fire. The flames that danced upwards burned the palm of Madison's hand that rested above it. She gasped in pain, quickly pulling her hand back and massaging her palm.

"Berald, Beroald, Balbin, Gab, Gabor, Agaba." Madison panicked. She ran out of time during her request for assistance and skipped a step all together. If anything went wrong in the end, she'd blame Zoe. At least she'd tried. The brunette looked frantically between Kyle and Madison as the blonde chanted in Latin.

"Berald, Beroald, Balbin, Gab, Gabor, Agaba." Zoe joined in. They repeated the chant three more times, each one getting louder than the last until both girls were shouting, the lights flickering all around them.

"Return to the mortal coil! Arise!" The electricity cracked one final time as Madison reached her hands out above the body on the slab before her. She waited hesitantly as she struggled to catch her breath. Reaching out, she grabbed the arm closest to her and lifted it before letting go and watching it immediately drop back down to Kyle's side. She huffed, shaking her head as she shifted her weight. "Well, that was a bust."

Zoe reached out, shaking Kyle lightly as she waited for something to happen. Madison pulled out the parchment and read over it once more, making sure she'd gone over the combination of Latin and Hebrew words correctly. Zoe furrowed her brow as she stood up taller. "Are you sure you said the spell correctly?" Madison glared at the other girl, crinkling the parchment in frustration unintentionally.

"Hey, I've been acting since I was five. I know my lines." The blonde spat, quickly gathering her things and preparing to leave.

"I guess we're just not powerful enough." Zoe's hands fell to her sides in defeat as the blonde draped her purse back over her shoulder. She folded Corey's olive and black leather jacket over her arm as she walked off in frustration. The brunette started to follow her before hesitating once more. "Hey, I'll, I'll meet you in the car. I, I left my phone in here somewhere."

"Hurry up," Madison groaned as turned away from the other girl, quickly flinging the jacket over her shoulder. As she pushed the front door open, she dug through the hidden liner of her purse for a joint. She tossed Corey's jacket onto the convertible top of her car and leaned against the door, but was quickly interrupted by the sound of a car pulling into the parking lot behind her.

"_Shit..._" She quickly shoved her things back into her purse and grabbed the jacket before opening the door and climbing into her car. "Tough luck, bitch," Madison muttered. She used her push-start to easily take off before the other car even pull in behind blonde wondered what had been taking Zoe so long to find her phone as she headed back to the Academy.

* * *

The repeated pinging of a cellphone grabbed the redhead's attention. Reluctantly, she reached out at scrolled through her notifications. One message after the next was a panicked thread of consciousness from her band and management team. She furrowed her brow, completely confused over what was happening.

She opened her most recent notification thread, a collection of multiple headline mentions on twitter.

_Corey Luna spotted getting cozy with Madison Montgomery._

_COULD COREY LUNA & MADISON MONTGOMERY BE MORE THAN BESTIES?_

_PIC: Corey Luna and Madison Montgomery get handsy!_

_COREY LUNA AND MADISON MONTGOMERY REACHED PEAK CUTENESS AT LOCAL NEW ORLEANS ROLLER RINK._

_Is Madison Montgomery Dating Musician Corey Luna—And Which One Are We Jealous Of?_

_IS MADISON MONTGOMERY SECRETLY DATING COREY LUNA? INSIDE THEIR RELATIONSHIP._

_PROOF: Madison Montgomery and Corey Luna 100% In a Relationship._

_COREY LUNA AND MADISON MONTGOMERY: ARE THEY MORE THAN JUST BFF'S?_

_Madison Montgomery And Corey Luna Dating? Tabloid Rumors Heat Up Once Again._

_IS THE MADDEY SHIP AFLOAT? THESE IMAGES MAY BE PROOF!_

"You have to be fucking _kidding_ me," Corey groaned. She let a hand run across her face, taking in a deep breath. She should have known how quickly their privacy would be invaded. She wondered who could have taken and spread photographs for a moment, knowing she hadn't spotted anyone out of the ordinary the day before. Her brow creased as she tossed her phone against the desk angrily. She couldn't come to a conclusion, a rumble deep in her bones catching her off guard.

A ripple of energy rolled across Corey's spine. Her muscles felt like flames itching to escape as her nerves spasmed under her skin. She clenched the edge of her desk, white knuckles spread quickly as her brow furrowed. She could feel her bones rattling, whatever energy spike she could sense making her teeth vibrate. It didn't stop until Madison walked through the door, the blonde oblivious to whatever had been going on in that moment.

"What the _fuck_ did you do?" The redhead spat. She flexed her jaw as a numbness rolled across her entire body. She blinked rapidly, looking down at her desk in front of her. The blonde froze, her brow furrowed as she stopped in the doorway to Corey's office. She went to speak but was cut off by the other girl's fiery glare. "I have never felt that much pain in my entire _life,_ Madison. _What. Did. You. Do?"_

"I thought you said you untethered?" Madison asked in a hushed tone. Her eyes were soft as she furrowed her brow. She couldn't understand how Corey could have felt the same pain that both she and Zoe felt during the ritual.

"I did," the redhead's jaw dropped slightly in anger. Her hand reached out to point to the blonde's purse. "The spell you took," she made a _come here_ motion with her fingers as she spoke. "Give it to me." Corey didn't understand why she had trusted the other girl to not get into things she shouldn't have, but she did, and now she was paying the price for it. Madison nodded as she pursed her lips. Quickly, she dug through her purse to take out the spell.

"I wanted to help Zoe get her _boyfriend_ back," Madison sighed. She spoke quietly as she shuffled across the room. She handed the spell to Corey, swallowing hard as the other girl snatched the paper from her hand. "It didn't work anyway," she shook her head. Her tongue jutted out as she sucked in her bottom lip.

Corey's eyes scanned the paper for a moment. A few seconds was all she needed to realize that she was holding a Necromancy ritual in her hands. Her anger fell from her peach face as she grew paler. It was something Madison didn't even know was humanly possible. The redhead swallowed hard, pursing her lips as she placed the parchment down on her desk. "Do you realize what you've just done?"

Madison's brows furrowed. The confusion was written all over her features as she tried to figure out what her girlfriend was accusing her of in that moment. "Corey, I told you, it didn't work." Corey rolled her eyes. Her head tilted to look up at the other girl as she rested her elbows against her desk, her hands folded in front of her.

"Necromancy requires a trade of life energy to manifest correctly," her tongue jutted out to wet her bottom lip as she tried to choose the words she said carefully. "From the looks of it, since she's not here with you, Zoe made that trade. If she didn't, then you just abandoned her _after making a deal with the devil._" The words at the end of her sentence were louder, almost a shout, as she spoke through her teeth and lost control over her temper for a moment. Madison nodded, her tongue propping her jaw open as she tried to find the words to say.

"Right," the blonde pursed her lips. An angry huff escaped her nostrils as she looked down at her feet. "Sorry I tried to help a _friend_." She shook her head, looking back up at the other girl, her face void of any emotion. She quickly stepped back and left the room, her jaw rolling in anger as she nodded slightly. She needed to get out of Corey's office before the other girl ripped into her any harder than she already had. Luckily, or not so luckily, her phone trilled. _Trinity Pine_ scrolled across her phone's caller ID.


	12. twelve

THE SOUND OF AN UNFAMILIAR VEHICLE SPUTTERED to a full stop outside of the academy and Corey tensed slightly. There were three options at hand. The first: Madison had called for someone to pick her up. The second, slightly more likely option: Fiona had invited a _gentleman caller_ to the facility while her daughter was away. Before the redhead could even weigh the likelihood of a third option, the front door to the academy swung open.

The stench of swamp water and decay wafted through the halls. It caused the redhead's face to contort in an unruly manner. She used the back of her hand to try and block out as much of the smell as she possibly could, but there was only so much that cinnamon and charred cedar could block out. Corey pushed away from her desk, her nose scrunching in disgust as she tried to keep herself from retching.

"What the actual _fuck,"_ she muttered. She craned her neck as she moved away from her desk and out into the hallway. She watched from afar as Madison swayed down the stairs. The actress tilted her head and crossed her arms over her chest as she took in the brunette who tried to sneak in after dark.

"Well," the blonde spoke with a surprised pout. She nodded slightly as she raised her brows at the other girl. "I didn't think you'd find your way back." Zoe crossed her arms over her middle. Her head hung as her eyes locked onto the toes of her shoes.

"Yeah," she groaned. Her nostrils flared slightly. "No help from you, obviously." Corey moved closer as she watched the brunette's jaw flex in anger. Sure, she was upset with what the two had done, but it didn't mean that she wouldn't intervene if it came down to it. Madison had the _unfortunate_ habit of starting fights she couldn't finish.

"Thank you for abandoning me back there, by the way," Zoe scoffed. Her head lifted to lock eyes with the other witch. Corey stood taller, her gaze moving between both girls. She took in the tension between them, swallowing hard as a small grin crept across the blonde's face.

"I said I'd help you _build-a-boy_. I said nothing about helping you escape after taking too long to _find your phone_." The end of her sentence came with over-exaggerated air quotations as the blonde's hip jutted out to the side.

"And I did," Madison shrugged. Her hands fell to her sides. "It just _didn't work_." Her mouth popped as she shared a toothy grin. It faltered slightly, though, when she caught the older witch approaching from the corner of her eye.

Corey let out a light groan. The scent of menthol cigarettes and Chanel Nº5 finally snuffed out the scent of death and sewage, or at least smothered it to a palatable level. She cleared her throat, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked between the two girls once again.

"Nice of you to return before dinner," she spoke softly. The authority in her voice oozed from her tone. The meek brunette in front of her began to shrivel into herself again, her eyes growing wide. "I shouldn't have to warn you of the dangers that follow the ritual you _completed_," Corey's tongue jutted out as she turned her attention to the blonde.

"I know it wasn't your idea," she shifted her weight, looking back to Zoe. "And I know it's difficult to tell her no." Zoe nodded in confirmation, pursing her lips as she looked up at the redhead. Madison, on the other hand, stomped in frustration as she let out an audible groan.

"You say that as if—" She wasn't able to finish her sentence. Immediately, she was met with a look from the redhead that stopped her in her tracks. "Right," she cleared her throat, pursing her lips as she rocked back on her heels. "Well, uhm," the blonde looked around, trying to find anything to grab her attention and pull her away from the conversation at hand.

"Would you look at the time!" She took one step backwards, her eyes landing on the dining room down the hall where Spalding had been setting the table. She pointed in his direction, her brows arching upward. "It looks like dinner's just about ready. If you two would excuse me, I think I'll just head that way." She took off before anyone else could interject.

* * *

Corey sat at her desk, her feet up as she fiddled with a pen. An old Fleetwood Mac record played on vinyl in the background. The sunlight seeped through her office as she hummed along, tapping her foot as she stared at the open doors across from her. She had already watched Madison walk past her double doors in four different outfits that day, but it was the fifth one that caught her attention; a short blue cocktail dress with a sweetheart neckline. The blonde followed behind Nan closely, an eagerness and calculation to her movements. Corey furrowed her brow, tilting her head in confusion.

"Maddie," she called out. She removed her feet from her desk as she sat up. She watched the blonde stopped in her tracks, a frame of a film frozen in time. Madison took a step towards the office, leaning against the doorframe.

"Yes?" The blonde spoke sharply with eyebrows raised. She shook her head, as if asking _what do you want this time?_ They hadn't said a word to each other since the day before, even opting not to sit near one another at dinner. Madison had allowed Zoe take Corey's usual seat, forcing Corey to take Cordelia's.

"Hey, uhm, where you going in that?" Corey asked. She swallowed hard as she leaned forward against her desk, resting her face in the palm of her hand. There was an unspoken air between them, the tension more than enough for the redhead to tell that the girl was still angry with her. She could admit that she had been harsh, though she wouldn't dare to utter it as a fact. Nor would she say it to the other girl's face; not when she put herself in danger.

"Nan and I are just going to welcome our _new neighbors_ to the neighborhood," Madison spoke with a shrug. A light smirk crept across her lips, a playful aura to the girl that Corey knew all too well. She kept her comments to herself on the matter, knowing that the blonde had eyed the boy-next-door a few days before. Silently, she hoped that it was an attempt to shake off the media. She was tired of answering their questions every time they stepped out together.

"Kid needs a chaperone," the blonde shrugged. She pursed her lips in an attempt to mask her excitement. She knew it'd hurt Corey, but maybe part of her wanted that. She swallowed the thought back, not wanting it to creep into her posture and attitude. She was just following the orders sent down from her management; find another beard or they'd assign one for her.

However, Madison Montgomery always got what she wanted, and right now that was mindless sex with a stranger. She wanted to hide from her emotions, her true feelings. She wanted to smother her hurt and pain with a pillow and suffocate it with the breathy pleading of _more_ and _right there_ and _don't stop_.

"I'm bringing a cake!" Nan called into the opposite doorway. She grinned as she pulled the dish closer to her face so that Corey could see it. Madison looked down at her feet, her smile disappearing as soon as she was out of sight. The realization washed over her in an instant. She had been working herself up and telling herself that this was something that she wanted when, in reality, it was a cover-up to protect what she truly cared about.

"Right," Corey looked between the two girls. Her gaze landed on Madison with a glare. She chewed on the inside of her cheek, trying her hardest to keep her emotions in check. She fought herself as her features attempted to soften at the other girl's demeanor.

Just as she thought Corey wasn't looking, the blonde reverted to her hurt, broken stature. Her lips pursed, eyes closed, head hung low as she steadied her breathing. Corey watched as the blonde took a deep breath, her shoulders straightening as she stood up tall. A mask washed over the blonde's face in a fraction of a second and 'playful' Madison was back.

"Just keep an eye on one another," the redhead sighed. Her gulp was audible as the record stopped— a reaction to how quickly Madison could pretend her feelings were anything but physically and emotionally painful. She wished that she could peek into the other girl's mind, reach out and get a glimpse of what she was thinking. Though she could, she remained at her desk, her feet planted against the floor. Corey had a nagging feeling she knew what Madison's true motives were, though she just couldn't believe why the girl wouldn't outright tell her what was going on.

Being around the mismatched parts of the men who had physically harmed her— along with how quickly Corey was to become upset over her _little outing_ the day before and the images of the couple that circulated on the internet— caused the blonde to shut everyone else out. She couldn't trust herself to not completely unravel the second anyone she trusted offered her a shoulder. Though that would only leave two people: the one in front of her that she refused to have a real conversation with, and the other that left the academy that morning after having heard her cry to herself throughout the night.

"Don't scare them off. And remember the _house rules_." Corey let out a sigh as Nan nodded quickly, the grin on her face growing larger as the 'de facto'headmistress granted her permission. The redhead watched as Madison rolled her eyes, knowing that those rules had only applied to the blonde. She knew better than to bring her beards and 'conquests' home when they lived under the same roof.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," the blonde groaned. She kicked off the wall and turning away. "Can we go now?" She rolled her jaw, becoming impatient. They didn't even know if boy next door would be home, though Nan insisted that he would.

"Go," Corey shooed. She rolled her eyes at the blonde before looking back down at her desk in front of her, shaking her head. She listened as Madison's heels clicked against the tile flooring, sounding almost frantic as if this was her only chance to get away. The two girls hadn't said another word to the redhead. Instead, they opted to make a break for the door before they could be pulled back into the academy's halls.

"What do you expect to get with that stupid cake?" Madison asked Nan as the heavy wooden door swung shut behind them.

"I'm just being neighborly," Nan whined. She pulled the plate closer to her chest as they walked. She looked the blonde up and down from the corner of her eye, her nose turning upward in disgust. "What do you expect to get with that dress?" Madison scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"Laid," she said simply, adjusting the hem of her dress. "He's gonna be my fall fling." Again, the playful smirk crept across her lips. Fall fling; flavor of the week; a cover to bury whatever her fan base had dug up about her real relationship. Whatever it was she didn't care, as long as she got what she wanted and could go back to pretending like she didn't have real, true feelings.

"Isn't that what you have _Miss Corey_ for?" Nan's brow furrowed. She shook her head, trying to figure the other girl out. "Why didn't you just tell her the truth?"

"Miss Cor—" Madison let out a sharp laugh, throwing back her head. "What _Corinna_ doesn't know won't kill her." She reached forward to ring the doorbell with a half-smile.

"That's not very nice, you know," Nan mumbled under her breath, waiting for the new neighbor to answer the door. "Besides, she'll figure it out sooner or later and it's better not to lie about it." She watched as Madison rolled her eyes again. The blonde's jaw flexed as she picked a spot above her on the wraparound porch to focus her attention on. When the neighbor's son answered the door, Nan couldn't keep the smile from taking over her features.

"Welcome to the neighborhood." The tall boy took a step forward, his brow slightly furrowed. "We're from next door. My name is Nan." The young girl leaned forward, smiling as she gripped the plate in her hands tighter. Madison stood tall, squaring her shoulders as she tilted her head slightly at the boy.

"Madison," she said simply. She looked at their new neighbor with a smile. The boy couldn't take his eyes off Nan, his gaze locked on the younger girl with the cake in her hands. Madison looked at him with utter confusion etched into her features.

"Thanks," the boy shoved his hands into his pockets for a moment as he smiled at the brunette. "I'm Luke." He pulled one hand from his pocket as he stepped aside. His tongue poked out to wet his lips as he pointed into the home, "Come in."

Madison walked in first, a polite nod in his direction as she stepped past him. Nan handed Luke the plate of cake as she walked in behind the actress. The boy closed the door behind him as the blonde lead the small group through the house. She looked around, taking in her surroundings with a nod and a soft smile as Luke spoke again.

"This looks amazing," he smiled down at the brunette for a moment before looking at the cake in his hands. "Homemade?" He asked. He was unable to tell that Madison was rolling her eyes in front of him as she let out a sigh.

"I bake," Nan responded with a smile. There was an extra pep in her step as she walked. Not only was Madison _already_ seeing someone, but the cute boy from next door was interested in her instead of the movie star.

"The cake's just an excuse," Madison sighed. She leaned against the closest piece of furniture she could find, still delicately wrapped in plastic and blankets from the moving truck. "I saw you moving in. You looked pretty good without a shirt." She twirled a piece of her hair with her index finger as she watched Luke dig through boxes for some silverware and a knife to cut the cake.

She could feel that her game was off. The drive that she knew she should have normally felt to seduce the 'All American' boy immediately became nonexistent. "Made me interested in the rest of the package." Luke looked back at her confused, but Nan looked at him with a smile, adding in an awkward chuckle.

"Is this lemon?" He asked Nan as he returned to the cake. A small smirk peeked across the corners of his lips as he placed three plates on the dresser that Madison had been leaning on. Again, he ignored the blonde to give the younger witch all of his attention.

"It's yellow cake with butter frosting," The girl responded with a smirk, causing Madison to grit her teeth. Luke's face lit up as he turned to the young girl, her smirk quickly taking over her whole face. "I knew it'd be your favorite." Madison rolled her eyes at the interaction before her.

_Of course,_ she thought. She let out a sigh in frustration. _Nan using her clairvoyance to her advantage once again, as usual._

"It's the one thing I can't resist," Luke looked over at Nan with wide eyes. While he was bewildered that the young girl could _guess_ what his favorite type of cake was, the actress was starting to piece the situation in front of her together.

"Wha—Are you seriously ignoring me for dessert?" Madison looked back and forth between the two, scoffing. She stomped her foot down. Her eyes narrowed at the boy as he quickly turned away, again searching the boxes that lined the walls.

"I get the feeling you're used to being the center of attention." Luke replied with a smirk as the blonde frowned at him. It was rare that she was ignored, and nine times out of ten it was solely because the person she pursued just _wasn't on her radar._ Unfortunately for her, Madison just wasn't picking up any signals from the boy, whether right or wrong ones. Nor was she even enjoying flirting with him in the first place. Sure, he was paying attention to Nan, but it was all just formalities.

"This is Madison Montgomery," Nan laughed, shaking her head. "She's famous." She tried to sway the boy's attention in the blonde's favor, watching how quickly her body language changed from calm and confident to something reminiscent of _Zoe Benson_. As Luke turned back around, Madison immediately pushed her feelings aside again. Her poise and demeanor changed at the flip of a switch.

"Well, we don't have TV... or Internet," Luke pulled out a large knife and returned his attention to the cake in front of him. Madison studied his body language as he spoke to Nan, taking in every detail.

"Oh, you _must've _heard of her _girlfriend_," Nan chirped. The actress' eyes quickly grew to the size of saucers as the words left the other girl's mouth. The brunette knew that the blonde wouldn't do anything to jeopardize outing their coven to the neighbors, or so she had hoped.

"Corey Luna, daughter of Stevie Nicks." The blonde's eyes moved between Nan and Luke quickly as the other girl looked at him with a smirk. He hummed for a moment, pressing the knife into the cake in front of him.

"The names are familiar, but I really couldn't tell you if I knew who either person was," Luke swiped his finger along the blade of the knife as he pulled it out of the cake. He quickly brought it up to his lips, licking the frosting off it. Madison stuck her tongue against the roof of her mouth when she heard Nan let out a chuckle to keep herself from rolling her eyes too dramatically. She looked up to find an older woman leaning against the doorframe, her head held high.

"Well, this is the welcoming committee." The woman, a redhead with her hair pulled back in a tight bun, crossed her arms over her chest. "And you brought baked goods," she stalked forward into the room, her eyes not leaving Madison.

"Aren't you darling?" She made an attempt to look intimidating as Madison held in her laugh. The blonde gave the older woman a slight smirk as she spoke, her _I'm anxious and uncomfortable _tick. "Well, we'd love to visit, but we're running late for church." She looked at Luke, placing a hand on his forearm as he continued to cut into the cake in front of him. "We'll take the cake to share."

"Church?" Madison looked between them for a moment, confused. "It's not even Sunday." She looked at Luke with a sideways smile.

"It's Bible study," he looked back at Madison with a slightly furrowed brow, talking with his hands as he shrugged. His mother stood next to him with her hands clasped in front of her.

"It's how we maintain our personal relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ," she glared at Madison once more. Nan smiled widely, the movie star was finally getting the attention she desired, though it was entirely negative. Madison let out a chuckle, leaning against the dresser in front of her with a smile as she turned to Luke.

"You know that's all a crock of shit, right?" She looked from Luke to his mother, a cocky smirk plastered on her face. The woman reminded her of her own mother, the vile blonde who had forced her into religious therapy for years. It put a foul taste in her mouth, immediately altering her mood. Nan's face fell, knowing that wherever this conversation led would get them kicked out.

"I mean, why wait for some phony happily-ever-after when you can have your piece now, I say." Nan's face contorted into a scowl. The actress already had everything she could ever want— fame, fortune, someone who loved her unconditionally and cared for her more than she knew— and yet here she was, still wanting more.

Madison picked up the knife that Luke had put down on the dresser and ran her finger across it, preparing to slide it through the cake. Her goal quickly shifted, now wanting to unload everything she had never said to her mother on the stranger before her. She hesitated, holding back the venom in her voice.

"What about you, Luke?" She asked with a half-smile. There was a playful look in her eyes as she slowly moved to cut another slice. Madison felt the older woman's hand on her wrist before she could see it. As she looked down, her emotions quickly switched from shock to panic.

Finally, she landed on anger as her eyes shot up, glaring at Luke's mother. She was no longer mentally in the home of her neighbors. Instead, she was reminded of her own mother. Of every time the woman had laid a hand on her in anger or resentment. She let go of the knife, intending for it to clatter against the dresser underneath her. Instead, it flew across the room and wedged itself into the plaster of the wall. She swallowed hard, the panic once again taking over her features.

"I forbid you to talk to my son or to set foot in this house again," Luke's mother's tone wavered, the fear evident in her voice. Madison's gaze flicked to her hands as she fidgeted anxiously.

"I didn't say anything!" Nan quickly made an attempt to defend herself. She physically leaned into the conversation that unfolded in front of her.

"Both of you! Get out of my house!" Madison turned away before the woman could say another word. She was angry, both at herself for letting her emotions take over and at the situation as a whole. "We'll pray for you." She ignored the older woman as she made her way to the front door. She just wanted to return to the walls of the academy in peace.

Her eyes locked on the woman's curtains as she walked out. As her angry gaze narrowed, the two sets of curtains near the door caught fire. She wasn't sure what had triggered it, but again her panic took over her face. Her breathing caught in her throat as she hesitated to move further towards the door.

"I didn't know you could do that," Nan spoke frantically. Her hands waved as she tried to usher the actress towards their only exit.

"Neither did I until now," Madison's voice cracked as she spoke. Her pace picked up as she moved to grab the doorknob in front of her.


	13. thirteen

MADISON. MADDIE. MAGGIE. THE MYSTICAL MISS ESMERALDA. A character that the blonde had played on a short television miniseries, sure, but also an embodiment of everything Madison was afraid of portraying in the end. She was meek, and callous, and spoke what she wanted as truth, but only after disaster struck and left her _'_partner_'_ without hands. A con-artist on the outside; a sad, lonely woman looking for somewhere to call home— family, even— on the inside.

_Maggie_ folded into herself, the pain and sadness highly evident through her body language and facial features. It was a look Corey had only ever seen a handful of times. The night Madison's mother had sent her to jail; Fiona's first two nights back at the academy; the night the blonde had spent with Corey and Stevie in the recording studio; the night Madison realized that nothing her mother ever said to her would change the way she felt for Corey.

They'd grown stronger, both together and as individuals, in the time between filming the miniseries and where they were currently, but it didn't make Corey any less emotional. Her lip slipped between her teeth as she watched _Maggie_ practically cowering, taking a seat on the bed next to Jimmy. The blonde's lip quivered as she looked down at the boy with his nubs wrapped in bloodied gauze, forcing a smile. When he returned her small attempt at civility with an angry lip curl, Corey moved her knuckles to rest against her chin.

Usually, she'd be watching these things with Madison, but this was a role that was painful for her to portray. With the blonde seemingly angry with her, Corey took it upon herself to finish the thirteen episode story-arc on her own. The redhead made sure that, no matter what, she supported the other girl's career just as much as— if not more than— the blonde supported her own. That included the viewing of any projects she participated in, no matter what the material entailed.

She pulled her laptop closer to her face, laid back in an awkward position on her bed with the covers pulled up over her chest. The brightness from the monitor was the only illumination in the room, covering the girl's face in a bright white light as she adjusted her position, headphones secured over her ears.

_"I'm sorry. I hate hurting you."_

_Maggie_ had pulled off the dirty bandages and sterilized the wound with pure alcohol, leading Jimmy to let out a painful yowl. She calmed her breathing, an attempt to keep herself from breaking. Corey sniffled, flexing her fingers so that they rested against her face.

_"Oh, really? I thought that was your whole gig— to hurt people."_

Jimmy refused to look at _Maggie_, which caused the pain in her face to roll into anger before transitioning into sorrow. She swallowed hard, a sad determination in her eyes that Corey hadn't ever seen before.

_"I love you, Jimmy. That part is real. It always was. I want a clean start. We can still go to New York like we planned. Why not?"_

Corey couldn't guess how many takes Madison needed to get the scene right, having never heard the words come out of the blonde's mouth outside of the characters she portrayed on screen. She wondered if the line hit too close to home for the actress.

They'd talked about going back to the redhead's New York City apartment in the past. Corey had friends with a recording studio in the area, and the blonde could easily find auditions through her agent wherever she went. They'd spent the better part of their relationship there as _roommates_, though returning now would lead to pointed questions and assumptions that were, more-or-less, completely true.

It wasn't something that the blonde was ready for, and Corey didn't know if she ever would be. She wasn't even sure if Madison knew the feeling at all, being in love. Part of her hoped she did, having spent a good portion of their time together knowing that she was _undoubtedly_ in love with the actress. Eighteen tracks, all partially penned in-studio, were enough for anyone to know it was the truth.

She could tell by the hesitation in the blonde's voice that she was unsure of the line, unable to decipher the truth from the character in that moment. Maybe it was a creative choice made by herself or the director. Either way, Corey could feel her heart drop at the words, the look on _Maggie's _face as she delivered the lines, the anxiousness in the girl's body language. Every element of the character's portrayal made the redhead want to pull her counterpart into a tight embrace.

_"You're kidding, right? You think after everything you've done, you think we're just going to ride off into the sunset? My hands are in a goddamn jar, and that's all because of you."_

_"I am so sorry. I'm gonna make it right with you and with them. I promise."_

A smile peeked at the corners of _Maggie's_ lips, causing Corey's lip to quiver ever so slightly. It was a slight tick that the other girl had, a signal she was uncomfortable in the situation that unraveled around her. She couldn't tell if Madison was truly uncomfortable in the situation on screen or if her body just naturally moved as the character would in that moment.

_"You're gonna bring Ma Petite back from the dead? Hmm?"_

_"I've changed, Jimmy."_

_"If I was you... I'd get the hell out of Dodge before I get those new hands."_

_"I'm gonna make things right, with them and with you!"_

Corey's headphones were still resting snugly over her ears when the alert on her cellphone screen lit up her room. The tears welled in her eyes as she watched the scene end on the blonde struggling to keep herself together. The sniffled, sitting up taller as she shifted her weight against the pile of pillows behind her. They were an aesthetic choice made by the actress, _"It'll be cute, I promise!"_ She jumped lightly as her phone vibrated against the sheets next to her.

"Jesus _Christ_, Fee," she muttered. She slammed her laptop shut, hoping that the streaming service would pause the file for her to pick back up on later. She slid the headphones from their place on her head and tossed them onto the now closed device.

"What's so important that it couldn't wait until morning," she groaned. She moved the laptop from its position on her chest to the empty spot on the bed next to her. The pillow that usually held an imprinted divot of Madison's head rested unsettlingly rounded and fluffed in her peripheral. She unplugged the cellphone from its charger, more agitated than grateful as she accepted the call from her manager.

"Do you even realize how late it is?" She sighed. Her head tilted to the side as she picked at the hem on the large weighted comforter. Again, a stylistic choice made by Madison. She heard the man's gruff laugh come through the receiver and rolled her eyes.

"That's one way to thank your manager for getting you studio time," she could hear the sarcasm in the older man's voice and was more than capable of picturing his grimy image through his tone. She could hear the music of a club in the background, the continuous thudding of the excessive bass giving her a sympathetic headache. "You do have an album ready to go, _right?"_

_Not even close_.

"Of course I do," her tongue jutted out to wet her lips and she swore she saw a figure standing in her doorway. It collapsed into itself and dissolved into the darkness that surrounded it.

Madison stood just out of the other girl's line of sight, knowing she'd most likely have already removed her contact lenses this late at night. She wanted to apologize and admit her faults, but it seemed as though she'd arrived a bit too late to speak with the other girl.

"I told you that moving away with _that Montgomery girl_ wouldn't bode well on your creative juices." The older man spat the blonde's name, which caused the redhead to become stone-like. She froze, as if defenseless. The problem wasn't a creative block, it was the fact that everything she managed to come up with would scream _Madison Montgomery_ to anyone that dug deep enough. Anyone with more than a single brain cell would know who the songs were about, especially with the couple's constant back and forth with the media.

"Madison has nothing to do with this, Felix," she raised her voice. Her fist clenched the comforter in her hand. She knew exactly why the older man didn't share a fondness for the actress. Felix Mourningwood never took kindly to women who denied his advances, and Madison was one of those women.

The blonde backed from the doorway, her lips pursed as she nodded to herself. A frustrated post-argument Corey was never a version of her girlfriend that she wished to interact with. Especially immediately after the girl had to defend her actions or character over the phone. She wasn't even sure why she was standing just outside of redhead's bedroom to begin with. Her feet had led her to the witches room, an unspoken tether guiding her through the halls.

"Just don't disappoint me, kid." Corey could smell the wafting stench of the cigar between Felix's fingers as he adjusted the aviator glasses on the brim of his crooked nose, or so she thought. Her almost immediate association with the name _Felix Mourningwood_ was the smell of bourbon and cheap cigar smoke; a stomach churning combination.

"Yeah," she groaned. She rolled her eyes as she threw back her covers to clamor out of bed, the immediate search for creative inspiration afoot. "I'll be there first thing with something to record." She ended the call before Felix could utter another word. She didn't want to deal with him treading through her creative process any longer now that she had a true deadline to meet. "What a _fucking_ asshole."

* * *

Corey sat down at the piano, her glasses snug on her face, begging for inspiration to ooze from the keys. She sighed, setting up her phone to record before carelessly moving through chord progressions as she tried to find a sound she felt a connection to. It didn't take long before she was fumbling through possible lyrics. She reached forward, tossing back the glass of scotch that sat against the lid of the piano.

"And I can't talk," she started an octave too high, clearing her throat and starting over briefly.

"I can't talk to you when you're like this." Corey bounced back and forth between two chords. Her eyes moved up to lock on the chandelier above her as she dug through her mind for a full verse. Then, she remembered the miniseries she'd been watching right before her call from her manager. Again, she started over— this time with a spark of excitement in her eyes.

"I can't talk to you when you're like this, staring out the window like I'm not your favorite town." A slight smirk crept across her lips as she got into the groove of the writing process once again. "I'm New York City, I still do it for you, baby." Just when she thought she was on the cusp of finishing the first verse, she heard a guttural grunt from across the room. She jumped, a sour note ringing out from the piano as her foot remained on the sustain pedal.

"For _fuck's sake_ Spalding," Corey exhaled slowly. She tried to collect herself as she removed her foot, the ringing of the off-chord coming to an abrupt halt. "How many times do I have to tell you not to do that shit while I'm working." She closed her eyes briefly, her head shaking as she scooted the stool away from the keys.

"What's so imp—" She reached forward and stopped the recording on her phone. Abruptly, she ended her sentence when she caught the glimpse of the overly put together woman from next door. "Ah, shit," she muttered under her breath. Her hands fell against her sides. Again, she'd trusted Madison and, again, the actress managed to knock her down yet another peg.

"Sorry," she sighed. She stood from her seat and moved across the room. "What can I do for you?" Corey stood with her hands folded in front of her, the image of a choir singer waiting for the conductor to give them their queue. Spalding grunted, letting out a _hrumph _as he walked out of the room.

"Joan Ramsey," the older woman took a step forward. She looked down at her feet with a nod before continuing. "My son Luke and I moved into the old colonial next door." Corey nodded in response, able to put names to the faces she'd seen a few days prior.

"Ah, yes," she gave the woman a sideways smile. Her eyes locked onto the book that the woman white-knuckled against her waist. Joan looked around frantically as the witch spoke. "I noticed the two of you unpacking the other day. Beautiful home, by the way." Corey took a step forward, offering her hand.

"Corey Luna." As if a lightbulb went off in her head, Joan's brows flicked upward slightly. She'd heard the name muttered earlier in the day, but hadn't realized that 'the heathen' had lived right next door.

"I'd like you to have this," Joan placed the book that she had been clinging against herself into Corey's outstretched hand. The redhead's brows furrowed slightly as she looked down at the book pressed against her palm. She pulled it closer as she adjusted the glasses on her face.

"I always bring a copy of the _Good Book_ whenever I come into someone's house for the first time." The girl's thumb ran across the gold embossed lettering and floral embellishment that rested in the leather of the front cover. Almost instantly, inspiration rippled through the redhead.

_We might just get away with it._

_Religion's in your lips, even if it's a false god._

_We'd still worship..._

"Th-thank you?" She wasn't sure what to say. On one hand she was truly thankful for the spark of inspiration. On the other, she silently anticipated whatever cruel or vile things could come out of the woman's mouth without realizing the type of company she was in. Or maybe she had realized, which only made the situation worse in Corey's mind. Part of her had expected a similar reaction to that of Madison's mother, though she hoped it wouldn't be anywhere near as abhorrent.

"Anyway," Joan cleared her throat as she folded her hands in front of her, a parallel image of how they'd stood previously. "I don't know if this is a school or," she paused, taking in the atmosphere around her. "A rehab facility or what it is, but two of your girls invaded my property. One of them was dressed so scandalously I—I'm worried about the long-term effect it might have on Luke."

"I'm sorry?" Corey's brow furrowed as she tilted her head. The confusion washed over her features almost immediately. _Invaded her property?_ She almost didn't catch the mention of Madison and what she'd been wearing.

"I—" She cleared her throat, shaking her head. "I watched both of those girls before they walked out the door. Something isn't _'scandalous'_ just because it doesn't cover ninety percent of your skin." The witch talked with her book-hand as she crossed her other arm over her chest, her hip jutted out in a judgmental manner.

_"Ooh_, she was wearing something _you_ didn't like, big _fucking_ whoop. These girls don't have to dress to impress anyone but themselves, and they struggle to do even that on most days." Corey paused, able to hear the footsteps she'd memorized echoing closer.

"I will never understand you _Bible-thumpers_ and your hypocrisy towards sex and self-expression. I know, behind closed doors, you are the _biggest_ perverts of all." The redhead narrowed her eyes at the woman. She wouldn't allow anyone to talk down about the other girls, especially not about Madison.

"Your student threw a _knife_ at me! It missed my head by three inches." Joan raised her voice, causing Corey to roll her eyes. The girl stepped away, placing the book on top of the piano before pouring herself another glass scotch.

"I'll have to teach her to aim better next time." Corey let out a light chuckle as she shook her head. She brought the glass up to her lips as she looked over at her neighbor once again.

"I didn't come here to listen to your _mocking_." Joan took a threatening step forward, though it didn't have the effect she had anticipated. Corey stood taller, squaring her shoulders as she took a quick sip from the glass in her hand. "Those girls had better not come around my place again. I will call the police and I _will_ press charges. Assault with a deadly weapon, _arson_." Corey froze, the smug look on her face faltering.

"Arson?" She put her glass down. Her eyes scanned back and forth as she tried to piece the evidence together. The familiar footsteps came to a halt and Corey looked up, her panicked gaze locking on the actress from afar. Again, inspiration flooded her psyche.

_We might just get away with it._

_The altar is my hips, even if it's a false god._

_We'd still worship this love._

"The trashy one lit my curtains on fire." Corey inhaled deeply. Her eyes closed to keep herself from growing angry at the older woman in that moment. Her hand reached up to delicately adjust her glasses as if it was what she was seeing that was foreign to her and not the words coming out of the other woman's mouth.

"I don't know how she did it, but she did it." Corey opened her eyes. Her steely gaze locked on the older woman that stood before her. She rolled her jaw as she exhaled through her nose and took one powerful step forward. As she opened her mouth to speak, Madison's sarcastic tone fluttered across the room.

"I conjured the Devil." The blonde stood in front of Corey's open office with a hand resting against one of the tall white columns that supported the upper level of the building. Her head tilted to the side smugly.

"That's her." Joan spun around to look at the other girl, her breath hitching. Madison kicked out her hip as she wiggled her fingers and gave a threatening wave to the woman across the room. She scrunched her nose as she smirked, trying her best not to let out a laugh as she watched the panic wash over the neighbor.

"Yeah, thanks Captain Obvious," Corey groaned. She knew it was Madison. Nine times out of ten, if you told the redhead that something happened and the blonde just so happened to be there, she was usually the cause of whatever it may have been.

"You stay away from my boy," Joan pointed a threatening finger at the other girl, her hand wavering as her nerves gave way to the fear she felt in the other girl's presence.

"Hmm," she hummed. Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth for a fraction of a second. It was all the time she needed to weigh the pros and cons of continuing to mock the family next door. "Good luck keeping him away from me. He's so backed up, all I'd have to say is _panties_ and he'd jizz his jeans." Corey rolled her eyes. While Madison was probably right, it didn't mean it was something the redhead wanted to hear.

"Stay away from my family," Joan turned to Corey, her shoulders rising with a shake as she took in a breath. "In Jesus's name!" As quickly as she had entered, she turned and stomped off, leaving the two witches to watch each other from across the room.

Madison let out a scoff, shaking her head as she turned to leave. The redhead panicked. Her shoulders fell from their defensive position as she watched the other girl start to walk away. It seemed, however, that the blonde was moving exceptionally slow for someone trying to escape.

"Hey babe?" Corey called out, her hand digging into her pocket for her pack of cigarettes. The blonde stopped in her tracks and turned to face the other girl with a smirk. It wasn't a nickname she heard often. Though, to be fair, it wasn't one she used often either. Corey lost the ability to speak for a moment as their eyes locked, her mouth dry as a desert while her heart thumped loud enough that she swore Madison could hear it across the room.

_You're the West Village._

_You still do it for me, babe._

"You got a light?" Her tongue jutted out to wet her lips, though it didn't do much to help her in the moment. The front door clicked shut as Corey managed to finagle a single black stick from the pack of cigarettes.

Madison looked at her with a confused expression for a moment, taking a few steps back into the room with her head held high. She was unsure of why the other girl was asking for her assistance. She knew that she was just as capable of lighting her own cigarette as the blonde was. When she realized why Corey had made the request in the first place, it was written all over her face.

"Oh," she muttered. Her brows raised ever so slightly as she slowly stalked forward. She met the redhead half-way, a playful smirk her lips as she focused on the end of the stick in her hands. Her brows furrowed, the prominent crescent between them a sign of her concentration. Corey placed the cigarette between her lips before letting her hand rest against her hip. Madison's smirk grew larger as she watched the flame flicker, lighting the stick with an excited gasp.

"Ta-dah," she chirped. She flicked one brow upward as her bottom lip slipped between her teeth, both in a playful manner and in excitement over her newfound power. She looked between the redhead's eyes and lips, her gaze lingering on the latter of the two.

"Proud of you," Corey chuckled. She pulled the cigarette from her lips as she exhaled through her nostrils, letting the smoke filter out into the air before her.

"Who knew I could do that?" Madison hummed. She swayed back and forth as she continued to close the distance between them. As she grew closer, her eyes grew softer. She wanted to stop, to plant herself at the end of the piano and keep her distance, but once again her feet led her on their own.

"Come here," Corey reached out a hand. Her fingertips grazed against Madison's cheek as she brushed the hair out of the blonde's face. Madison leaned into her touch. She closed her eyes, her lips curling upwards as she inhaled the combination of charred cedar, ground cinnamon and black coffee. She hummed in content as she slowly opened her eyes, sighing at the sad look in the other girl's green ones.

"I'm not going to apologize," Madison spoke quietly. It was almost a whisper, as if she didn't believe the words that came out of her mouth.

"Yeah?" Corey asked. One brow arched upwards in a challenge as she traced the other girl's cheek bone with the pad of her thumb. "Then I'm sure there's a perfectly good _different_ reason why you were hovering outside my room earlier." She narrowed her eyes at the blonde with a smirk and watched the realization flash in the girl's gold eyes.

"You saw," Madison let out a sigh. Her eyes locked onto her feet as she tried to come up with an excuse. She cleared her throat, shaking her head. "As if I'd interrupt a call with the _slime-ball of the century_." Corey couldn't hold in the chuckle at the nickname that the blonde had picked for the man very early on.

"Hmm," the redhead let out a hum. Her hand slid around to cradle the back of Madison's head. "If only you had," she laughed as she leaned forward to place a kiss against the other girl's forehead. She let out a sigh, resting her nose against the top of Madison's head as the actress wrapped her arms around Corey's waist.

_I know heaven's a thing._

_I go there when you touch me, honey._

_Hell is when I fight with you._

Corey narrowed her eyes, the orange glow of a lit cigarette in the otherwise dark hallway grabbing her attention. Her grip around the blonde tightened, her hand moving to the middle of Madison's back to pull her closer. The Supreme's words echoed subconsciously. _You're in over your head if you think you can protect her from the things that go bump in the night; I would've thought your mother taught you better than that._


	14. fourteen

WHEN THE SUN BEGAN TO PEEK THROUGH THE SHEER bedroom curtains, Corey's arms were still wrapped around Madison's frail frame. She squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to leave the bed. She'd spent the last few days in the studio, running on caffeine fumes and nicotine while still trying to keep the academy running smoothly with Cordelia away. Slowly, she opened her eyes. She blinked back the light that started to flood through the room.

The blonde's hair splayed out across her chest as she slept with her head tucked under the redhead's chin. Corey watched the shallow rise and fall of the weighted comforter for a moment. It was an attempt to collect herself before having to go through the mundane process of her usual day-to-day. She rested her cheek against the top of the blonde's head, trying not to wake the other girl with movements that were too brisk.

Instead, she felt the pressure of the actress's leg wrapped around her waist as she tightened her grip. Madison furrowed her brow with a pout. She let out a groan in protest as she nuzzled against Corey's chest. A smirk crept across Corey's lips as she let out a chuckle, her arms wrapping tighter around the porcelain girl beside her.

For the first time in a long time, she was content. She closed her eyes, letting out a soft hum as she took in Madison's familiar scent. A foreign giggle left her throat as she felt the delicate trail of kisses the blonde left behind. They started at her clavicle and slowly moved up the side of her neck to her lower jaw. Her eyes fluttered open as she looked down at the other girl, the smirk on her face mirrored ten-fold.

"Mornin', sunshine," Corey hummed. Her left hand trailed up to cup Madison's cheek. She watched as the girl's bottom lip slipped between her teeth, her gold eyes scanning the other girl's face. The sleepy gaze mimicked the equally sleepy tone in the girl's voice.

"Good morning," the blonde sighed in response. Her grip on the redhead became loose as she craned her neck to take in the other girl. "What time do you have to be at the studio?" She asked. Her bottom lip jutted out in a slight pout as she pressed her cheek against Corey's shoulder. There was a playful spark in her eyes, one that craved a challenge.

"Not until about noon-ish." Before Corey could even question Madison's motives, she watched the excitement wash over the girl's face. She let her delicate fingers trail up Corey's sides. Her lips curled upwards as she felt the ripples throughout the other girl's skin caused by her touch.

"Good," she said simply. She nodded once, her eyes hooded as she sat up. Corey looked at her with a furrowed brow, confused yet intrigued. As quickly as Corey could blink, the actress was straddling the musician. Her one hand rested against the pillow on the side of Corey's face as the other latched onto her side. Her thumb found its home in the crevice just below the redhead's ribs.

"More time to be alone." Corey swallowed hard. Her mind urged her to make the other girl laugh. She wouldn't let Madison get away with pinning her down so easily. She needed to do something, anything, to break the tension between them.

"Jinkies," her tone wavered as if she wasn't sure of the delivery. She unknowingly forced her voice to stretch through her dry throat and out into the atmosphere that surrounded them. She struggled to keep herself from laughing as she watched the blonde's face. Madison pursed her lips, her eyes still hungry as she hovered over the other witch. She wouldn't let herself break. Corey's shoulders twitched, coming undone underneath the actress as her face quickly followed in suit.

"Oh, come on!" Corey challenged her. The crinkle of joy near her green eyes only made the other girl want her more. "That was a good one and you know it." Her laugh rippled out, quietly at first, gradually filling the room with a roar.

"I fucking hate you," Madison muttered. Her giggle crept out through the corners of her mouth. She brought her hand up from against the pillow to cover the grin that took over her features. She shook her head, trying her hardest to look away from the other girl.

"Yeah?" Corey challenged the remark. Her brows arched upward as her hands snaked up Madison's thighs to rest against her hips. She let one hand continue to move up the blonde's side as the other planted itself firmly in the divot of her waist. Her tongue jutted out to wet her lips as she watched Madison nod feverishly, her head turned away from the witch loosely pinned underneath her as she mumbled an inaudible response.

"How about now?" Corey heard Madison squeal as she flipped them over so that the blonde's back was pressed against the white sheets on the mattress underneath her. She smirked at the soft _thunk_ of Madison's shoulders bouncing against the pillow. She leaned down, her lips ready to connect with the blonde's in an instant.

"You going to be a tease this time?" She asked. Her breath hitched as the anticipation rippled through her nerves. Her gaze flickered between the witch's green eyes and soft lips. She was more than capable of closing the distance between them, but something deep down told her to let this play out on its own. Like it'd be an eternity before they could ever be themselves like this again. Madison grabbed the weighted comforter by the fist-full and slowly tugged it up Corey's back, her lip slipping between her teeth once more.

"No," the redhead shook her head. The simple statement all that was needed to kick the blonde underneath her into gear. "We have all the time we need, Babygirl." Her suddenly husky voice caused Madison to swallow hard. The only response she could muster up was a frantic nod as her mouth became dry. The hitch in her breath was audible as her hand cupped the back of Corey's neck, her eyes flicking to the girl's lips once more as she closed the distance between them.

* * *

Corey peered up at Madison from her seat on the floor, her head tilted back against the mattress as she plucked at her guitar strings. The blonde sat in the bed with her blood pressure cuff secured over her bicep. The sleeves of the baggy tee-shirt she seemed to be swimming in were rolled up to her shoulders. Ophelia rested comfortably in her lap, one paw reaching outward as she stretched. The cat's mouth opened in a yawn, and a quiet squeak escaped from the back of her tiny throat.

Corey found a melody that the blonde seemed to enjoy, watching her sway back and forth as she moved through different chord progressions. Madison had one side of her stethoscope secured in her ear while the other dangled next to her head, the drum pressed against her pulse point in the crevice of her arm.

"You should take it as a compliment that I got drunk and made fun of the way you talk." Madison looked over at the redhead as she began to sing. A smile slithered across her features as she listened to the other girl. When she heard the first line come out of Corey's mouth, the blonde rolled her eyes, She tilted her head at her counterpart as she pulled the eartip away and tossed it to her side. She quickly flipped the other girl off. "I turn into a mess, alright?"

"You should think about the consequence of your magnetic field being a little too strong," Corey gave the other girl a fake pout. "You know it ain't my fault," she let the laugh rumble up from her chest as she watched Madison continue to bop back and forth, her middle finger still held up proudly as she pulled her pressure cuff off.

The blonde collected her monitoring equipment and tucked it away in the bed side drawer before pulling out a pack of cigarettes and an ashtray. Ophelia quietly protested, the heavy black lump of cat remaining firmly in her spot upon Madison's lap. She watched the redhead with a small smirk on her face from her spot on the bed.

"And I've got a boyfriend, he's older than us." Madison's playful demeanor dropped slightly. Her brows furrowed as she started to pick up on the meaning behind the words. "I haven't seen him in a couple of months," the blonde scoffed. One brow arched upwards at the redhead. She lit one of the pearl white sticks with her newfound powers, her shoulders rolling defensively.

The words weren't a lie, Corey _had_ been seeing someone when they met. However, she never had any idea where he was or who he was with. If she was honest with herself, she was really only with him as a way to not be alone. She had no connection to the man, and no desire to be seen with him or be around him in general. He was a chess piece placed by her management team to make Corey seem more relatable to her audience.

"I go through phases when it comes to love," the redhead closed her eyes. Her head tilted to the side as she continued to ignore the blonde's silent protest. "I'm nothing that you want, but I must say... _Sunset and Vine_, you've ruined my life by not being mine."

The mention of the street where the pair had shared their first _real_ date caused a smirk to peek at the corner of Madison's lips once again. Though TMZ had immediately found them, it was reported as a _budding friendship_. They learned the hard way that they could never have real privacy if they remained in the industries they were a part of. For the most part, it was still true. They couldn't leave the academy without one of them, or the pair together, being spotted every time.

"You're so gorgeous, and I ain't just talking about your face, but look at your face. Ah, ah ah-ah." Corey opened her eyes just in time to watch the blush creep across the blonde's face. Madison tried to hide behind her hair but realized she'd been caught when she heard the laugh leave Corey's lips as she made an attempt to vocalize through the makeshift chorus.

"And I'm so curious, your mind's got me feeling some type of way." Corey scooted to the side so that she was fully facing the other girl, her tongue dipping out and wetting her bottom lip as she continued. "What can I say? You're gorgeous. Ah, ah, ah-ah." Again, the blonde peeked out from behind her hair. Her eyes locked with the redhead's.

"You make me so happy it turns back to sad. There's nothing I want more than what I can't have. You are so gorgeous it makes me so mad." Corey watched as the smirk on the blonde's lips grew slightly larger. Madison scooted closer to the edge of the bed, her head tilted slightly as she continued to listen to the other girl.

"You make me so happy it turns back to sad. There's nothing I want more than what I can't have. Guess I'll just stumble on home from my cab... alone... unless you wanna come along." Madison hummed as she leaned across the bed. Her hand held her cigarette up in a way as to not scatter loose ash against the bright white bedding. Corey threw her head back in a laugh. Her eyes were bright as she watched the other girl practically dangling off the edge of the bed. The only thing that held her down was the weight of the black lump in her lap. She slid forward, her voice merely a whisper as she locked eyes with Madison.

"You're so gorgeous, I can't say anything to your face. Just look at your face. Ah, ah ah-ah," She expected to be hit with a pillow. Or a piece of clothing. Or anything other than the blonde hovering mere inches away from her face.

"And I'm so furious at you for making me feel this way." Her face relaxed as she watched Madison's eyes become hooded once more. Corey struggled to catch her breath. She could feel the goosebumps on her neck from the blonde's smoke filled exhale fluttering across her skin.

"But what can I say? You're gorgeous." The blonde leaned forward. Her lips connected with the redhead's just as quickly as they had previously. They were filled with the same hunger, the same desire and want, that had taken over them hours before. She felt one small, clawed paw brush against her chin as Ophelia quietly protested once again. The acoustic guitar clattered against the marble floor as Corey shot upward. She was positive that she'd be late for her in-studio session.


	15. fifteen

THE GUITAR CASE CLATTERED AGAINST THE METAL DOORFRAME as Corey stumbled in through the studio doors, struggling to shuffle inside. She was running late, her glasses still secure over the bridge of her nose. She was aware of the articles depicting her sudden reappearance on bourbon street. She'd seen the paparazzi, the flash of their cameras never truly secret no matter how far away they were. She'd always been overly aware of their presence when she was alone. She looked down at her phone, her twitter feed pinging with numerous notifications flooding her screen.

_Corey Luna Seen Alone for the First Time in Months._

_COULD THERE BE A NEW ALBUM IN THE WORKS? COREY LUNA REEMERGES FROM THE SHADOWS._

_Era of Silence Over; Corey Luna Spotted Wandering Alone._

_SONGBIRD SEEN FLEEING THE COOP. TROUBLE IN PARADISE?_

_Musical Legacy Returns to the Studio!_

Her guitar case teetered against the floor as she turned to close the door behind her. Her producer, Jack, sat with his headphones resting over his ears. Corey sighed as she pulled her hood from the crown of her head, her focus still on the phone in her hands.

_If they're already posting pictures online then they better at least look good,_ she thought. She opened one article after another as her curiosity got the better of her. She checked her social media mentions as she plopped down on the futon in the corner of the dimly lit office space.

_[stan twitter always loses their collective minds whenever looneytoon is seen outside, i swear.]_

_[can looneytoon give a sneak peek of what she's been working on? we're starving over here.]_

_[ looneytoon out without mmmontgomery? Don't tell me it's the end of my brotp!]_

_[ looneytoon. that's it. that's the tweet.]_

"The prophecy returneth!" Jack called out from across the room, causing Corey to jump slightly. She rolled her eyes as she locked her phone, shoving it into her back pocket.

"Calm down, Jackie-boy, I had _one_ day off." Corey laughed. Her head shook slightly as she turned her attention to the man sitting across from her. He was positioned with his shoulders slumped forward, the large square frames of his glasses taking up most of his face. His oversized headphones hung around his neck, partially crushing the collar of his Hawaiian shirt. He put his hands up in surrender with a laugh.

"Sure, sure," he chuckled. His hands clasped together as he placed his elbows back against his lap. "Whatever you say!" Corey's hand traveled towards her face to scratch at her bottom lip with the back of her thumb anxiously. She wasn't sure why she was on edge, but something hadn't felt right to her while she prepared to leave the academy.

"So whaddia got for me today, Luna," Jack looked at her with one brow raised, his head cocked to the side slightly. Corey's tongue darted out to wet her lips before she spoke.

"I was hoping you had that track ready. The one I sent you the rough recording of?" Jack's eyes lit up, his excitement immediately evident.

"Oh _boy_, do I," his brows flew upward, taking up the only real estate of his forehead that hadn't been occupied by the frames of his glasses. He spun his chair around, playing the demo of the backing track for Corey to hear. She listened intently as she removed her hooded cape from her shoulders, tossing it across the futon behind her. She bopped her head as the trill of the saxophone flowed over the slow R&B style beat. The track was exactly what she'd asked for during their last meeting.

"Fuck, dude, this is perfect," she continued to sway back and forth as she prepped her recording area, pulling the mic stand near her so that they could start the session.

"You've just gotta get, like, all the personality and character—" Jack craned his neck to look at the redhead, his grin taking up a large portion of his face as he spoke. The witch cut off his words, her voice void of emotion.

"I don't have either of those things." Corey spoke with a straight face, her shoulders squared. "You know that." Though it was a joke, she forced herself to remain stone-like. The sarcasm threatened to seep through her pores like the hiss of an overly agitated bottle of coke.

"I wouldn't tell that to Madison if I were you, though it _is_ what _everyone _says." It was Jack's comment that caused Corey to let out a brief snort, turning away from the microphone in front of her. He always knew how to cause both girls to burst out into a laughing fit, no matter how hard they fought it.

"Oh, the people of the internet," she sighed. "They say the darnedest things." She made sure that the microphone stand and pop filter were in the right position before pulling her phone out of her back pocket and setting it up against the workspace across from her. She pressed record and stepped back slightly, looking between Jack and the phone that faced them.

"Look, I've got a corner of you in frame. I can see one half of your comically large pair of glasses. And I'm in frame as well. Except there's some sunlight issues." She paused for a moment, lost in thought. "Do you think—" Corey stepped forward slightly. She moved closer to the microphone by her side in an attempt to keep the glaring beams out of her line of sight.

"Ope! Not when I step here! _Hell_ yeah." She looked between the phone and Jack as her face scrunched in thought. "Do you think Maddie would like this shot?" She laughed. Her head shook as she once again moved the microphone stand over, trying to stay out of the direction the sunlight would move in as time progressed.

"This is good. It's great. Though, I think she'd enjoy the shot better if it was just your ass." Corey threw her head back in a laugh, her voice ringing throughout the room.

"_Fuck _off,"her giggle seeped through every syllable that left her lips. She stepped forward once more, adjusting her phone so that she stood in a full frame shot as Jack tested the track's audio levels in her headphones.

"Let me know how this sounds before we start," he handed her the wireless headset that had previously rested against his large computer monitor. Corey secured them over her head with a nod, turning back to her mic stand. She danced in place, causing both herself and Jack to let out sparse giggles over her chipper attitude. He contemplated commenting on the change between the last time she'd been in his studio and now but decided against it, which was probably for the best. Corey gave him the thumbs up, letting him know that the current audio levels were alright with her.

"Ready?" He asked. Corey cleared her throat with a nod. Her hands moved up to adjust how the headphones rested against the top of her head. As she moved them, she adjusted her glasses with her other hand, making sure that their arms wouldn't dig into the sides of her head.

"Yeah, yeah," she muttered. Her tongue darted out quickly to wet her lips. "Punch me in at the top and we'll go from there." Jack gave her a quiet nod, leaning forward towards his monitor to give Corey a count through her headphones. Corey listened to the eight second saxophone intro before coming in on the first verse.

"We were crazy to think, crazy to think that this could work; remember how I said I'd die for you?" She leaned away from the pop filter to inhale quietly before stepping forward again. Once her eight-count was over, she came in with the next line. "We were stupid to jump in the ocean separating us, remember how I'd fly to you?"

"And I can't talk to you when you're like this, staring out the window like I'm not your favorite town." Again, Corey took a quick breath. Jack watched the uniform vocal waves as they appeared on his monitor. "I'm New York City, I still do it for you, baby."

"They all warned us about times like this. They say the road gets hard and you get lost when you're led by blind faith, blind faith." Her nose scrunched as her eyes closed slightly; her unintentional facial tic for when she took a vocal step.

"But we might just get away with it. Religion's in your lips, even if it's a false god. We'd still worship." She swayed back and forth to the beat, getting a bit carried away.

"We might just get away with it, the altar is my hips, even if it's a false god." She let a hand run across her chin, her nose scrunching as she thought for a moment.

"_Fuck_, nope. Can we get that again?" She asked. She stepped away from the microphone. "I feel like the speed is off. Like the tempo should be, like, cut in half. This is just too slow." Jack stopped the track, nodding. Corey looked down at her feet, her bottom lip slipping between her teeth as she tried to come up with a better solution. She really wasn't sure why she suddenly wasn't enjoying the backtrack. It was everything she'd asked for from her producer and more.

"Yeah, let me reset and play around with some stuff real quick and then we'll be good to go." Jack focused on the work in front of him, which worried the redhead. Usually he'd be a bit more playful with her, especially in the workroom. The silence was deafening.

"How do I sound over there, by the way? Everything good?" She looked up, her leg bouncing anxiously as she stood tall.

"Vocally, you're perfect." He fiddled with the track, making sure the tempo was where Corey wanted it. "There," he said with a nod. He spun his chair back around to face the redhead once more. "Now the track should be perfect, too." He gave her a lopsided smile, his head bobbing once in a confident nod.

They ran through the first half of the song again, more energy radiating through the small studio space than before. This time, Corey felt the same ripple through her veins. The excitement and determination she'd felt while writing the song flowed through her once again.

She hadn't noticed the four missed calls on her phone until after they'd wrapped. It was long after the sun had set and Spalding prepared dinner for the coven when it finally caught her eye. She furrowed her brow and lifted her phone from Jack's desk as she scrolled through the notifications.

"Shit," her anger launched from her lips, the panic in her eyes evident. Each call notification caused her chest to tighten. The belt around her lungs skipped notches as she saw the times that each call came through. She let out a shaky breath, trying to collect herself before listening to the voicemail that had beckoned to her.

_"Hey baby. I know it's not usual that I call you while you're at work but I just wanted you to know where I was going. Fiona's taking me on one of her dumb fucking field trips. Cordelia's not here to give me an excuse to not go, that bitch. Don't wait up, I'm not sure when I'll be back tonight."_

Corey froze, as if the words were in another language that she couldn't understand. _Don't wait up_. It echoed in her mind. Those three words almost begged for the redhead to run back to the academy as fast as she could.

"I need to go," her feet moved her faster than she thought they would. The panic took over her body as she struggled to gather her things. "I'll give you an update when I can, but I really _fucking _need to get back home." Before Jack could even respond, Corey was out the door. She pulled her hood over her head with the hand that white knuckled her cellphone as she pushed forward with her guitar case. She wouldn't leave any room for error, not after the conversation she'd had with her mother.


	16. sixteen

_"LADIES. OOH, YOU'RE LOOKING WELL TONIGHT," the Supreme stumbled into the room. Her voice slurred ever so slightly. Behind her, Madison tripped over her own feet. A squeal left her lips as she stopped herself from fumbling forward and landing face first against the hardwood floor below her._

_"Let me give you some advice." Fiona tossed her purse onto the piano, laughter bubbling up as she swayed back and forth. "Get your portrait painted when you're young. Just look at these old bats." She took in a deep breath as Madison went along with her._

_The young witch tried to follow in suit as the Supreme strolled along the room. She lobbed her cellphone in the direction of the piano. It clattered against the floor and slide as far underneath the baby grand as possible. A muffled giggle left her lips as the Supreme continued to speak._

_"Mine is gonna go over there." Fiona extended her arm, a regal finger pointing to an empty spot next to the portrait of Mimi DeLongpre. "And yours'll go... over there." As she turned, her pointed finger landed on the vacant chunk of wall next to the portrait of Selene Nicks. Madison threw her head back in a laugh, her balance slightly off as she wobbled._

_"Doubt I'm even graduating this shit show." Her vision blurred as she tried to focus on the portrait that had seemed so far away. The tunnel vision quickly took over. "No way they're gonna commemorate me." She leaned back, trying to catch her balance as she looked up at the ceiling with a sigh._

_"Well, they'll have to..." Fiona stalked forward, her hands planted firmly against her back. The act of 'drunk Supreme' was over. Madison was far too intoxicated to be able to tell if the older woman was or wasn't._

_"Because... you're the next Supreme." Madison's smug look fell from her lips. The cogs in her head turned as she tried her hardest to comprehend what the woman was telling her._

_"Wait." Her brow furrowed. She tilted her head as she tried to get a read on the older woman. She truly couldn't tell if Fiona was being facetious or not. "Are you serious? How do you know I'm the next Supreme?" Madison swallowed hard. The breathy laugh that Fiona let out as she smiled wide sent a chill down her spine._

_"Because _I_ am the old one." Fiona continued to circle around the girl, a vulture watching her prey buckle beneath her. "And I'm dying," she stopped. She let the actress study her for a moment. Madison immediately brought her hands up to her waist, her fingers fidgeting as she looked at the Supreme with sad eyes._

_"My time is up," the vulture returned. Madison's weakness to her predicament was highly evident. "And you're... killing me." A threatening finger wiggled in the air. The prey watched ever so carefully yet somehow still missed all of her red flags._

_"Your powers, you've been feeling them growing?" Fiona watched as the girl's brow furrowed, even more confused by what was going on than before._

_"Yeah, like crazy. But I'm not the only one who's powers are growing." She tried to make the situation make sense in her head, but everything told her that the snake-oil salesman in front of her was anything but honest. The alcohol within her held a counter-argument._

_"Have you ever wondered why?" The Supreme held her head high. The smile curled up in the corner of her lips when she heard the scoff escape the other girl._

_"Uh, apart from my being awesome?" Madison's lips let out a drunk _'pfft'_ as she leaned back, her arms extending outward. She wasn't expecting the Supreme to become hostile._

_"_I'm_ the source." Fiona's volume raised ten-fold as she leaned into the girl's personal space. Her index finger pointed inward, knocking against the center of Madison's rib cage in anger._

_"My life force is literally pouring out of my body and into all of yours." Fiona took a step back. She took a deep breath as she tried to collect herself. Now wasn't the time to play games. This was kill or be killed, and only one of the parties involved was aware of it._

_"This is no mystical mumbo-jumbo. This is real." Madison swallowed hard. The fear in her eyes took over the rest of her body as she stood with her feet planted against the center of the white fluffy rug in front of the piano. It was the same spot she'd stood only nights before, comforted within Corey's tight embrace._

_"I have cancer." Fiona let out a laugh. She slouched down into the chair that rested opposite the actress, its back firmly against the wall underneath Mimi's portrait. "I won't last the year." Madison stepped forward. She hesitated before taking a step back into the space she had felt safe in._

_"I have connections," she struggled to find the words to say. Compassion wasn't her strong suit when it came to anyone other than Corey or Stevie. That was clear enough in her failure to help Zoe. "My agent can get the best oncologist in the country here in a flash." Fiona laughed at the suggestion. Her eyes locked onto a far corner of the room._

_"Chemo? Oh— Oh, no, no— No, no, no, I'm not going out bald and shriveled and..." Madison nodded. Her tongue darted out to wet her lips as she looked down at the floor in front of her. "Begging for morphine. No. I've lived a disreputable life, but I've done it in style, and I'll die likewise." Fiona wrung her hands together. She refused to allow herself to look at the actress that dared to make her feel any real human emotions. She scoffed as she looked from wall to wall, continuing to avoid looking at the obviously uncomfortable witch standing before her._

_"I don't belong on these walls. I took my inheritance too soon and..." Her voice was almost a whisper, as if saying it any louder would tell the universe that she'd regretted taking the throne when she did. "Squandered it. All that power, all those gifts. I just took it and poured it back into myself and dressed it up in Chanel." She stuck her tongue out, letting it run across her upper lip to keep herself from crying. Fiona didn't care that she was telling Madison the truth. Her goal was never to allow the actress to rise as the Supreme. It was to make her vulnerable enough to snuff her out and continue on her merry way._

_"I was a shitty Supreme." Her eyes landed on the blonde. The young girl caught her breath as she inhaled. "But, now, my mentor, Anna Leigh Leighton. Now _there_ was a Supreme." Fiona rose from her seat, finally stalking towards Madison. Towards her purse atop the shiny black piano that Corey had previously poured her soul over every night that week._

_"She was majestic and powerful. She taught me everything I know." The Supreme's voice wavered. Her focus locked on the eyes of the portrait against the wall. Madison watched her with a furrowed brow, trying to understand the words coming out of the older woman's mouth._

_"You know how I thanked her? By cutting her throat. Right where I'm standing." The panic washed over Madison's face as she watched Fiona reach into her purse and produce a short blade. A letter opener, overly sharpened and lightweight. One quick thrust in her direction and she'd be done-for._

_"With this. I've kept it all these years. And now I give it to you." Fiona stepped forward. Her hand wavered ever so slightly near Madison's throat. Again, the young girl swallowed hard. Her eyes moved frantically between the letter opener and the Supreme._

_"Why? I don't want that." Madison could feel her chest tighten. She wanted to leave, to run away and hide, but she remained planted in place as the pure fear took over._

_"Yeah. Come on, here." Fiona grabbed the blonde's hand. She wrapped the girl's limp fingers around the handle. She could feel that Madison was trying her hardest to let go. She clenched her own fist over the girl's fingers, making sure it remained in her hand._

_"No, I have to go." Madison took a step back but Fiona yanked her body forward. The blonde lurched in the Supreme's direction, the tears falling down her cheeks. In that moment, she knew there was no getting out of this situation. Madison was either going to die right where she stood or take someone else's life. She refused to do the latter. Fiona had never wronged her, as far as she knew._

_"Don't be afraid. Use it. Kill me for the sake of the coven." The Supreme spoke over the other girl, a deranged pitch in her tone._

_"No." It came out as a mumble. As faint as her racing heartbeat with all the same gusto of her fear that bore through her eyes._

_"Yes, come on. Don't be afraid. Do it! Come on, now, do it!" Madison pulled back. She tried to escape the death-grip against her hand._

_"I can't!" She yelled. She hoped that anyone else in the building could hear her. One person. That was all it would take for the blonde's life to be saved._

_"Yes, you can, you stupid girl!" Fiona shook the blonde's arm. Her face was full of anger as she continued to intimidate the young witch. The squeak that escaped Madison's throat as she tried to hold in her sobs was amplified by the rattle of her chest._

_"Do it! And feel my power flow into you! I know, because I was standing where you're standing!" The Supreme grew more adamant with each shake of her hand. She'd known the plan all along, but she'd never expected her body to take over. It was as if someone was puppeteering her. Like something had crawled into her core and locked onto making sure she snuffed out the next Supreme before anyone could initiate the Seven Wonders._

_"Stop yelling at me!" Madison screamed at the top of her lungs. She yanked her arm towards herself harder with each turn of her shoulders._

_"Do it! Do it! Do it!" Fiona chanted the order over and over again. A broken record demanding her own deranged poetic justice. She wondered if part of her really was ready to die. If this was all just her soul preparing herself for her inevitable end._

_"No!" Madison screeched. Her hand finally slipped from the handle of the blade. She stepped back, turning to take off. To find help. To get to safety._

_"Do it!" Fiona swung her hand again. This time it slid across porcelain skin. She heard the gasp from the blonde, but her eyes were focused on her work. Locked onto the sloppy cut she'd made before thinking everything through. Red wine against pale white._

_"No." Fiona was frantic. The word that escaped her lips was merely a whisper as her hands flew forward in an attempt to stop the bleeding. She'd forgotten all about one important piece of the puzzle._

Corey shot upright from a dead sleep. Her body was covered in a cold sweat as her hand instinctively moved to her throat. Her earbuds fell into her lap as she struggled to breathe. It was a combination of a strong gut pain— almost as if she had been hit by a truck— and what felt like her airways being cut off completely.

She told herself it was just a nightmare as she checked the time on her phone. 4:30am with no call from Madison sent the redhead into a further panic after the terror she had awoke from. Before she could even attempt to call the actress's cell phone, a tornado blustered into her room. Her eyes tried to focus on the figure that quickly approached her. Without her glasses, it was nearly impossible. The figure blurred as it continued into her line of sight.

Corey sighed, the figure disappearing the more the redhead blinked. The sweat across Corey's brow caused her hair to cling to her face and she quickly pushed it out of the way. She grabbed her glasses, haphazardly shoving them onto her face. She swallowed hard, struggling to catch her breath as she forced herself to calm down from the dream that had caused her such physical difficulties.


	17. seventeen

THE CHIRPING OF CRICKETS KEPT HER AWAKE throughout the night, or, at least, that was what Corey told herself. She couldn't allow herself to fall asleep again after her nightmare. It felt too painful, too real. She had forcefully emerged from her slumber, feeling as though she was being suffocated. It reminded her of the pain she had felt when Madison _'stole'_ her spell; the blonde's repayment to the new girl for making sure the man who hurt her couldn't do the same to anyone else.

By the time she willed herself out of bed, the sun was beginning to rise. Corey tossed the comforter to the side, her bare feet sticking to the wood as they touched the floor. She couldn't stay in her bedroom any longer.

Couldn't spend another moment in an otherwise empty bed with a cat that was more attached to Madison than herself.

Couldn't believe that she had let herself fall asleep before Madison came home.

Couldn't sit and stare at the blonde's pillow as it slowly lost the impression of her head the further time ticked on.

Couldn't spend another second battling with herself on whether she was just seeing things or if someone really had been in her bedroom the moment she had shot up from her deep sleep.

She reached into her bedside table, pulling out her pack of cigarettes. She let one rest between her lips, focusing for a fraction of a second to light it without digging through her dirty clothes, which laid in piles on the floor, in search of a lighter.

She wandered out of her bedroom and down the hallway, the jingle of a black cat trotting after her the only sound aside from the creaking floorboards. Pinks and purples reflected against the walls as she nudged the door to Madison and Zoe's bedroom open without thinking. She had been so used to the room only housing one witch that she moved on muscle memory, forgetting for a moment that the room hadn't solely belonged to Madison anymore.

Zoe sprawled out in her bed, laying on her stomach as she read through a tattered and torn copy of _'The Price of Salt'_ by Patricia Highsmith. Corey recognized the copy as Madison's and her shoulders relaxed; the tension she hadn't realized she'd been holding in partially melted away. Zoe looked up over the edge of her book, the scent of cinnamon, toasted tobacco, and smoke that followed the redhead having caught her attention.

"Corey?" She asked, her brow furrowed. She was slightly confused, unsure as to why the witch had entered her room so early in the morning. Corey's eyes drifted over to Madison's empty bed, the sheets taut against the mattress. Her chest quivered as she took in a breath.

"She didn't come home?" Her voice caught in her throat. The panic that set in caused a high pitched squeak to let out as she tried to take in a full breath. Zoe's eyes followed Corey's, her head tilted slightly as she tried to understand what was going on.

"I'm sure she's fine," she shrugged, her attention returning to the redhead that stood in her doorway. She studied the other witch for a moment, trying her hardest to understand the situation at hand.

"She probably just found a flock of _dude-bros_ to tend to her every whim or something." The book in her hands remained partially covering her face. She pulled a hand up to her lips, her tongue darting out to wet the pad of her thumb before turning the page.

"She's _famous_, she'll be back before anyone _important_ can even realize she's been gone." Zoe paused, catching how her comment could be unintentionally harmful to the woman who hadn't moved from the doorway. Finally, the book fell from where it had been covering the bottom half of her face.

"I— I mean," she stammered. "You are too." She took a moment to think, to keep herself from accidentally offending the redhead. "And you're obviously very important. And I should have thought about what I was going to say before I said it." Zoe spoke quickly, almost stumbling over herself as she tried to make amends.

"I know you two didn't really get off on the right foot," Corey sighed. She wiped a hand across her face as she paused, trying to hold herself together. When she pulled her hand away, her expression was bland except for a slight, sad, downward turn of her lips. "But this isn't _natural_ behavior for her." She cleared her throat, pulling her cigarette up to her lips with a barely noticeable shake of her hand.

"Maddie wouldn't just not come home. She wouldn't tell me not to wait up." Her lip quivered as she spoke, a continuous struggle to hold in her emotions. "She wouldn't do this, this isn't normal." She shook her head, exhaling smoke through her nostrils as she spoke. Her voice remained a whisper, not wanting to alert the sleeping witches amongst the other rooms throughout the hallway. She swallowed hard, her eyes training on Madison's bed once again.

Zoe's panicked demeanor softened, her face falling in a sympathetic sadness. Though she had come to be unable to stand her roommate, she had a sort of a fondness for the blonde's counterpart. Corey was nothing less than kind to her in her time at the academy and Zoe didn't enjoy seeing the other girl in so much pain. She swallowed hard before speaking once again.

"If she isn't back by this afternoon, I'll help you look for her." Again, the brunette hadn't thought before opening her mouth. "It's New Orleans, how far away could she have gone?" The redhead, however, already had other plans. She knew that, if she couldn't reach the blonde by the afternoon, something drastic had to have happened to her.

* * *

Corey paced back and forth, her hands shaking as she called Madison's phone. It wasn't unusual for the blonde to not come home but— between her nightmare, the voicemail she'd left the night before, and the gut feeling that lingered a little too viciously for her liking— she'd been panicking.

She hadn't slept, not since she woke up covered in sweat and unable to breathe. Zoe had tried to get her to take a break; to rest, or calm herself, or do anything other than pace back and forth and worry herself to death. She wasn't sure how many times she had called the blonde, but she knew it had been too many to be concerned a casual check-in.

"Come on, Mads," Corey muttered. She focused on her cellphone, her free hand flying upward to clasp against the top of her head. "Just answer the god damn phone." She listened to the trill of the line for what felt like the millionth time as she looked up at her bedroom ceiling. She could feel her whole body tremble, having no control over her nerves.

_"You've reached Madison Montgomery. I can't come to the phone right now— and, frankly, there's a high probability that I just don't want to. Leave a message; I'll either get back to you or I won't."_

Madison's chipper voice fluttered through the room. It set Corey's teeth on edge, how the blonde could sound so cheerful and happy when she was nowhere to be found.

"Fuck, this can't be happening." The redhead's empty chest rattled as the sound echoed off the stark-white walls around her. Her bottom lip trembled as her mind traveled to a dark place. The nagging thought that her nightmare was real crept up on her once again. The notion hadn't ever truly left her mind, though the voice grew exponentially louder with each missed phone call, each passing hour, each incoming message from management or friends wondering where the girl was.

"Miss Corey?" Nan's voice was full of concern and urgency. It caught Corey off-guard. She jumped, her grip on her phone tightening as she turned around to find the younger girl standing in her doorway. "I—I can't hear her." The redhead's lip trembled.

"N-no..." Corey tried to hold her emotions in, to keep herself together, but she unraveled in an instant. "Don't you _dare_ fuck with me right now, Nan." Her lip curled upward in a snarl. She knew the young witch could hear her thoughts. They didn't even have to say the blonde's name to know what one another was thinking. _Madison was dead_.

"You think so too!" Nan's eyes grew wide, the immediate realization of the situation taking over. "You think someone killed her!" Corey opened her mouth to speak but she couldn't find the strength. Her jaw trembled as the tears threatened to break the dam. She pursed her lips, taking in a deep breath through her nose.

"Call the Council, and don't talk about this to anyone else until they get here." The words that managed to escape her throat were hoarse, as if she hadn't had a sip of water in years. The young witch nodded feverishly and turned on her heels to take off in search of the nearest house phone.

As soon as Nan was out of sight, Corey flung her phone against the wall in anger. It bounced off, clattering against the corner of the room loudly. It landed face down on the floor before skidding underneath her bed. Her knees buckled beneath her. Every emotion she'd kept bottled up poured out of her as her kneecaps connected with the solid wood floor. The sound of bone cracking against wood echoed as her hands covered her face.

She curled forward, her fingers grabbing and yanking at the hair against the back of her head as she let out a painful wail. Her arms shook as her head tilted backwards. Her fists clenched so hard around the curls at the base of her neck that her knuckles turned to marble. She sobbed, her brow contorted into a frown as her lips turned downward.

She knew that she had been loud enough to wake the dead, but in the moment she didn't have a care in the world. She struggled to take in a breath as she sobbed, feeling her tears splash against her knees before she even realized she was crying. Her body rocked as she coughed out through her tears, her shoulders falling limp. She was a rag doll, clattering against herself in a mess of limbs.

She let her forehead rest against her knees as she sat back on her feet. Her eyes squeezed shut as her shoulders bobbed up and down. She felt empty, like her heart had been ripped out right in front of her face and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Her cries escaped her throat in hiccups, her empty ribcage tightening one notch of the belt at a time.

She rolled backwards, her hands sliding down until her arms wrapped around her center. She leaned back, her head bouncing hard as it connected with the edge of the black wooden trunk at the foot of her bed. She didn't care about having a bump on the head. She couldn't feel the physical pain caused by her surroundings. She was too busy being consumed by the ever growing pain inside of her.

Madison was dead, she knew that for a fact. Fiona had killed an innocent witch in her hunger for immortality and it was her fault. Or, at least, she blamed herself. She knew, deep down, that Fiona would do anything to maintain her Supremacy. There had to be a reason for her rapidly growing powers, and yet she never stepped forward or made herself known because she didn't _want _to.

Her hesitation killed Madison; her denial; her incompetence; _her._ How many other witches would die at Fiona's hand before someone finally presented themselves and claimed the throne?


	18. eighteen

BLOODSHOT EYES FOLLOWED DELICATE HANDS. Pressed palms smoothed fabric across the front of a black parlor pin-up midi dress. Corey stood with her back to the door as she watched herself in her mirror, taking in a shaky breath. She fought to hold back the tears, her shoulders bobbing slightly as she closed her eyes.

Between her feet, a single black cat weaved back and forth. Ophelia was the only thing that managed to calm her. The cat was a gift from Madison; the first thing they had as a couple in their shared apartment. Usually, the cat was attached to the blonde's hip. For some reason, today, it refused to leave Corey's side. A quiet knock against the doorframe behind her grabbed her attention, pulling her back into reality for a moment.

"Miss Corey?" Nan's voice fluttered across the room. The redhead craned her neck as she slowly opened her eyes to take a look at the girl. "Th-they're here." The young girl folded her hands in front of her, her features sad. She watched Corey swallow hard.

"Thank you," the redhead nodded once, taking in a deep breath. She looked back at the mirror, observing her own face. Her high ponytail brushed against the base of her neck as she moved. Her eyes were puffy, bright red veins clutching against the place where the whites should be. She didn't feel as though she still had any tears left in her, but somehow the reservoir hadn't yet run dry.

"I'll be down in a moment." She sighed. Her lips pursed as she turned to face the young witch that stood in her doorway. "Alert Cordelia. She should be with Queenie and Zoe down the hall." Nan hummed in response as she turned on her heels. She quickly stomped down the hallway to find the headmistress. Corey took a deep breath, able to hear the front gate creak from her slightly open bedroom windows. She slowly wandered out of her bedroom, a mindless movement of feet guiding her to where she needed to go.

As she walked, she felt like she was floating. Each step through the hallway and down the large staircase was effortless as her body led her without a second thought. In her mind, she was hovering, gliding through her office and out into the parlor. Ophelia jingled behind her, never more than a foot between them as she trotted with her head held high.

Entering the parlor, Corey's eyes immediately landed on the large vacant spot on the floor. At her feet should have rested the fluffy white rug that once sat at the edge of the piano. It was a gift from her mother to make the academy feel a little more like her own personal space. Instead, the polished white knotty pine floor was bare, a reflection of her own face looking back up at her. When her gaze traveled towards the Council, her bottom lip quivered.

"Thank you all for coming." She nodded once. Corey tried her hardest to maintain control over her facial features. She looked down at her feet once again. Her eyes locked on Ophelia as she shook her head slightly and sniffled. "Cordelia should be with us at any moment."

Almost on command, the blonde hurried through the open door across from the two witches and the warlock that stood in front of the fireplace. The redhead looked up to take in the Headmistress's frantic appearance. She was barefoot, still in the same white nightgown she was wearing when she grabbed Corey from her bedroom.

"Wow," Cordelia whispered. She was taken aback slightly by the crowd before her. She hesitated, completely unaware of the reason for the Council's gathering. Quickly, she moved towards them. "I had no idea the Council would be joining us today."

Myrtle Snow— the older redheaded witch that stood front and center— met the Headmistress half-way and pulled her in for a hug. Corey could tell that they were whispering to one another but she was too far away to hear what was being said and wasn't standing at an angle in which she could read their lips. The two stepped apart as Corey moved towards the center of the room. Again, Ophelia followed. She circled around Corey's feet, her tail held high like a beacon.

"Council on Witchcraft assembles only under the gravest circumstances." Cecily Pembrooke— the older, frumpy looking witch— spoke with venom oozing from her lips. Her features remained unchanged. Having been ripped from her basic day-to-day life to meet for a missing witch caused her a great deal of boredom.

"And who doesn't love a surprise?" Quentin Fleming— the only male, a warlock, out of the group that stood before Cordelia— chirped with a smile. He tilted his head at Corey, his brows raising as if to ask _what gives?_ Cordelia sighed as Corey stood beside her, her shoulders falling in defeat.

"I'm sorry, but I can't guess why you're here," she looked down at her hands as she fiddled with her fingers. Her gaze flicked up to lock with Myrtle's. "But, I can assure you, all of our girls have found themselves resting comfortably." The older redhead looked confused amongst the rest of the Council, her head snapping between the two witches beside her before she finally focused on Corey.

"Uhm, actually, Delia," the young witch placed a hand on the Headmistress's shoulder, her eyes wide. "I know why they were called." She cleared her throat. Pembrooke chimed in, taking a cautious step forward as she looked between Corey and Cordelia with a furrowed brow.

"Something of potentially grave circumstance has come to our attention." Cordelia shook her head, finding a spot on the ceiling to lock her gaze.

"Oh, God," she whimpered, taking in a shaky breath. "I don't know what has been done, but I should have _known_ something was wrong." Corey clenched her jaw in anger. Her nostrils flared outward as her hand fell against her lap.

"Oh, for fuck's sake, Delia. This isn't _about _you." She scoffed. She shook her head as she rolled her jaw outward. Again, she struggled to keep her tears from falling. Before she could explain herself, the heel-to-toe click entered the parlor from behind her.

Ophelia let out a growl. She draped her tail over Corey's feet protectively as she stood with her back pressed against the witch's calves. Corey's shoulders squared as she stood taller, her face hardening as she prepared to deal with the Supreme.

"Don't get too comfortable," Fiona chuckled. Her hands floated around her as she walked. Ophelia hissed as she moved closer to Corey; a warning to the Supreme to stay away. Fiona rolled her eyes. Her nose involuntarily twitched at the cat in response. "And you?" She pointed to Cordelia. The blonde tensed instantly, her mother's gaze freezing her in her place. "_Stop_ talking." The Supreme wagged a finger at her in warning.

"Fiona!" Myrtle chirped. The disdain in her voice was evident. "It's been a long time." Corey watched as the two exchanged their fake pleasantries. She could hear the forced smile in Fiona's voice as she remained focused on the woman in front of her.

"Myrtle Snow," Fiona shook her head. A tsk escaped her lips as she looked the other woman up and down. "Look at you. Developing a sense of style when no one was paying attention." Corey could tell from the tone of Fiona's voice that she couldn't stand the Councilwoman. She let her tongue run across the front of her top teeth as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Quentin, you vicious old queen," the Supreme continued down the line. They laughed as she leaned forward to kiss both of the shorter man's cheeks. "What's it take for a girl to get her phone call returned?"

"Oh! My life is pure torment." Corey rolled her eyes as the man spoke. Of course the most daunting part of his life would be a national book tour. "One book signing after another. Travel, travel, travel. It's like get me off of the bestseller list already." Fiona let out a laugh. Cordelia looked over at Corey, continuing to fidget with wide eyes.

"Just remember whose magic it was that put you there." The Supreme reached her hand out, patting Quentin's cheek.

"Oh, Fiona. You're a caution." She threw her head back in a laugh. Her eyes moved to the end of the line to lock onto Cecily. She moved to open her mouth, say something sarcastic to the frumpy old woman.

"Fucking enough already," Corey groaned. Her head tilted to the side in anger. "We get it, you know everyone in the room. As do the rest of us." Fiona spun around, her open jaw met with an angry witch.

"You watch yourself, Corinna," Fiona pointed a finger at the girl. She took a cautious step in her direction. Corey stood taller, her head tilting as she held it high.

"You're stalling," Corey's brows flicked upward. A silent challenge for the Supreme to incite violence in front of the Council. Instead, Fiona's tongue jutted out to wet her bottom lip as she pushed past the girl.

"So," she cleared her throat. Her head tilted as she moved to the couch in the center of the room. "You _old hens_. What have you come to cluck about?" She sat down, one leg crossing over the other.

"We were summoned by one of your students," Myrtle spoke up, her focus on Corey. The silent invitation for the witch to explain the situation left out in the open. Fiona's face remained unchanging, but Cordelia's brows flew upward. The panic washed over the blonde, her heart caught in her stomach.

"Which one?" Fiona asked. She looked at the back of Corey's head. She hoped, silently prayed, that the girl was clueless as to what happened. Unfortunately, the girl's somewhat disheveled look and cold demeanor told her otherwise.

"Me," Nan's angry voice charged through the room. She stood in the same doorway that Corey had entered through, the redhead's office directly behind her. As Corey turned to look at the youngest witch, something caught her eye. Under the piano, in the far corner of the room, laid a rectangular black object. It glistened as the light reflected from it.

"I can't hear her anymore," the young witch continued. Corey's mouth fell open slightly, her lip trembling as she tried to catch her breath. "Madison? I think she's dead." She tried to maintain her composure in front of the Council, but one singular tear rolled down her cheek.

"That's why we're here," Myrtle focused on Fiona. She watched the Supreme's face, silently waiting for a sign. Fiona's brows flew upward, her head tilted slightly as she watched Corey. The young musician turned around, an angry huff leaving her lips as she pulled out her phone.

"You've fucked with the wrong witch, Fiona Goode." Her attention shifted to the shining object in the corner. She selected the most recent outgoing call, holding her breath in anticipation. Within moments, the screen lit up. Quiet vibrations came from the corner of the room closest to Nan.

Ophelia trotted towards the familiar vibration pattern, a coo escaping her throat in small, almost silent chirps. As Madison's caller-specific ringtone fluttered across the room, Corey's palm latched over her mouth. She took in a shaky breath through her nose, her lips trembling as the dam broke once again.

_Nothing's gonna hurt you baby._

_As long as you're with me, you'll be just fine._

_Nothing's gonna hurt you baby._

_Nothing's gonna take you from my side._

* * *

"Let the record show the official inquiry into the disappearance of our sister witch Madison Montgomery has commenced." The droning of keys being pressed caused Corey to zone out, her emotions getting the best of her. She sat before the long table— Quentin, Myrtle, and Cecily gathered in front of her. In her lap rested Ophelia, the quiet purrs of the black cat somehow calming her nerves.

"Noted," Quentin chirped in response. His hand moved up towards his face as he brought his cigarette to his lips. Corey continued to focus on her fingers, her hands smoothing down the fur across the cat's back. She scrunched her nose, trying her hardest to keep herself from spiraling.

"And the penalty for inflicting grievous bodily harm against a Salem descendent can be but one," Myrtle paused as she spoke, hoping that she could grab the young witch's attention. "Death by fire."

"Miss Nicks?" Corey looked up. The clicking of the stenographer keyboard came to a halt. "When was the last time you saw or spoke with Madison?"

"She left me a voicemail yesterday," she sighed. She shrugged one of her shoulders slightly as she shook her head. "She said something about going out with Fiona, but the last time I personally spoke with her was before I left for the studio yesterday afternoon." Myrtle nodded. She turned to look at Quentin as Cecily continued to type.

"Do you mind playing it for us now?" The warlock looked at the witch seated in front of the table with a raised brow. He used the hand that held his cigarette to point an upwards palm at the girl.

"N-no, not at all." Corey cleared her throat. She selected the voicemail from the call screen of her iPhone. Ophelia's ears perked upwards at the sound of the blonde's voice. However, Corey tensed as she heard Madison's playful tone come from the speaker of her cellphone.

_"Hey baby. I know it's not usual that I call you while you're at work but I just wanted you to know where I was going. Fiona's taking me on one of her dumb fucking field trips. Cordelia's not here to give me an excuse to not go, that bitch. Don't wait up, I'm not sure when I'll be back tonight." _Myrtle's brows flicked upward, creasing the center of her forehead in concern.

"So is it usual for instructors fraternize with their students in this facility?" Cecily spoke with her glasses resting on the edge on her nose, her head tilted. Corey's brows furrowed as she let out a scoff.

"I'm sorry?" She crossed her arms over her chest as she watched the woman type without ever having to look down at her fingers. "The proper channels were made aware of our relationship before I accepted the position offered to me. The information was indicated in both of our personal files." She spoke at a fast pace. Quickly, she became defensive over her relationship with the actress.

"The Council was alerted when Madison was transferred to the academy. I don't understand the angle you're aiming for here." Ophelia sat up and head butted Corey's arm with all the strength she could muster up. The redhead uncrossed her arms enough to scratch the top of the cat's head. Without prodding into the issue any more, Myrtle continued.

"Did she give the impression of being a particularly powerful witch?" Quentin pressed his fingertips together as he took in Corey's body language. He could tell the girl wasn't comfortable talking about the actress in past tense, but she tried her best.

"She already had decent control over her telekinesis when she joined us. Though, I wouldn't call it _particularly powerful_ if that's what you meant." Again, Corey looked down at the cat in her lap. She picked at Ophelia's collar, her face full of sorrow and concern.

"Before her disappearance, was Madison manifesting any powers? New ones, rapidly accumulating?" Myrtle jumped in with the next question, fearing she was losing the musician's attention.

"None rapidly accumulating, no. At least not that I'm aware of. She did, however, just manifest pyrokinesis." She thought back to the trip to the roller rink. How Madison managed to get the boys to leave them alone so that they could continue to spend time together in peace. Though she wasn't completely sure, she had a feeling the blonde had used concilium.

"And when did that happen?" Cecily was the next to chime in. Her lips pursed slightly as the Council slowly prodded information from the girl who should have been alone. The witch that should have been mourning the loss of the girl she loved, but never had the chance to tell how she truly felt. Corey knew it was false. She had the chance. She had plenty of chances to tell Madison. She just never took them.

"Roughly a week ago? I'm not sure. These last few weeks have been a bit of a blur." She took in a shaky breath. Once again, an attempt to keep herself from crying.

"Did anyone else know about this?" Quentin placed his thumb between his teeth, his brows arching upward.

"Nan, our youngest student." Corey swallowed hard. A nod followed her words. "And I believe Fiona did as well." Myrtle's face turned to stone as the words left Corey's lips. She swallowed hard.

"Is there anything important about Madison that wasn't noted in her personal files?" Cecily once again chimed in. This time, her features were softer than they had been. Less accusatory and more understanding of the redhead's behavior.

"Maddie had a heart murmur. She monitored it often, but kept it a secret. Cordelia and I were the only ones that knew." She squeezed her eyes shut. Her bottom lip quivered as she fiddled with her hands. "She wasn't the next Supreme. She was far from it, actually." She swallowed hard. Her bottom lip sucked in as she bit down on it. "Fiona wouldn't have known. That's not information that Madison freely gave out to anyone."

"That's all, Corinna." Myrtle's voice was softer than it had been throughout the interview process. Corey nodded, standing from her chair. She held Ophelia against her chest as the cat let out a quizzical cooing sound. Her head tilted up at the witch, a playful paw batting softly against her face. "Thank you." The girl walked away. She used the back of her free hand to wipe her tears from her face as the Council murmured between themselves.


	19. nineteen

**_2011_**

FOCUSED ON THE ROAD AHEAD OF HER, COREY ZONED OUT. The humming from her passenger seat was the only constant besides the Californian desert that surrounded the vehicle. Her fingers tapped against the steering wheel. The beat of the song on the radio thumped through the speakers as she searched the long road before her for the turn she needed to take.

"You know," the familiar voice next to her broke her focus as she blinked back into reality. She turned her head to take a quick look at the blonde that sat with her feet sticking out of the old truck's open passenger window. "If I had half a mind, I'd think you were taking me somewhere to kill me." The laugh that bubbled up from the blonde's chest made her shake her head. A playful smirk slinked across her lips.

"Calm down," Corey laughed. Her head tilted as she continued to focus on the road ahead of her. They'd driven in a straight line for miles. The road continued in the same direction ahead of them for just as long. "We're almost there." She didn't need to look to her side to know that Madison was rolling her eyes at her.

"Can you at least tell me _where _we're going?" The blonde's pout was audible. Corey gave her a look, one that simply told her all she needed to know; a side eye and with an air of _where's the fun in that?_

"If I tell you, it's no longer a surprise." She heard the scoff leave the other girl's lips before the scrunching of leather squeaked out as she wiggled into her seat more. Corey reached across the center of the bucket-seat, her hand finding its home against the blonde's thigh. She squeezed once, taking a quick look at the girl who rested with her straw sun hat blocking most of her face.

She knew Madison was frustrated; their schedules hadn't lined up in months. It was enough of a hassle for Corey to have to miss the wrap party for the scripted _Scooby-Doo_ project she was a part of in order to go on tour with her band, but only seeing each other over the screens on their phones was draining. Unfortunately, filming had been pushed back due to flubs in the script and the timing overlapped. When she'd left the filming location in Toronto and touched down in Los Angeles, Madison was filming a project in Barcelona — a visually appealing sci-fi fantasy alongside Milla Jovovich.

This sweltering day in July, the hottest that it'd been all month, was the first day the couple managed to get alone together. _And what's the first thing Corey does?_ Madison thought. Her arms crossed over her chest. _Make an impatient Madison Montgomery endure a three hour drive from Burbank into the depths of the California desert_.

"We're almost there, Maddie," Corey gave her a small smile before returning her attention to the road ahead of her. "I promise." She felt the blonde's fingers interlock with her own. A light huff of content left her nostrils as her opposite hand remained against the steering wheel.

She swallowed hard. The anticipation got the best of her as the GPS alerted her of her final turn before she reached her destination. As she took her hand back from the actress, she watched Madison pull her legs into the cab of the truck. The girl's face scrunched in confusion. Corey pulled into the open plot of dust and dirt. She turned the truck around so that the bed was facing the mountains, tucked out of direct sight from the road.

"There's nothing out here," Madison noted. Her nose scrunched, her lips forming a pout as she looked over at the redhead. Corey turned the keys, cutting the engine. She laughed, looking at the blonde beside her.

"That's the point." Madison's brow seemed to furrow even more as the words left Corey's mouth. Her tongue jutted out, the hand that previously rested against Madison's thigh moved to brush a loose hair out of her face.

"It's quiet. No flash photography to interrupt anything. The sky is the clearest you'll ever see it; the smog from the city doesn't cover everything in a haze out here." Madison's facial features relaxed. The confusion was slowly replaced with soft eyes and a slight pout. When Corey's explanation was met with a long pause from Madison, she stammered.

"I—I thought we could lay in the bed of the truck and watch the stars?" She panicked. Immediately, she tried to find a way to backpedal. Had she bought the actress out into the middle of nowhere for a date that the blonde wouldn't even enjoy? "I brought blankets and..."

"Stargazing? That's your thing? Seriously?" Madison asked. She was in awe, though it wasn't a look the redhead had yet recognized. "You brought me all the way out here to _stargaze?"_

"I'm sorry," again, Corey stammered. She couldn't tell whether or not the actress was upset, and it threw her through a loop. "Now that I think about it, it sounds really stupid. I shouldn't have—" Madison cut the other girl off once again. The smile peeked through at the corners of her lips.

"You are _such_ a fucking nerd," Madison laughed. Her head shook back and forth as her gold eyes locked with the musician's green ones. Corey's brows furrowed in confusion and, before she could question or protest the remark, Madison leaned forward. Within a beat, their lips connected. The blonde let out a giggle at the musician's hesitation. She was taken aback slightly before following through with the rhythm and tempo led by the actress.

* * *

**_2013_**

Corey sat on her bedroom floor. Her feet rested underneath her in the center of a large, seemingly oversized, protection circle. She was working on her last possible option to find Madison Montgomery. The Council had left early on, not finding enough evidence that the actress had been murdered and hadn't just taken off on a bender.

Her last ten days had been filled with numerous locator spells, discovery potions, tracking rituals; each one a failed attempt. In front of her sat a spirit board, surrounded by candles and Madison's belongings. She closed her eyes as she took in a deep breath. One hand hovered over the board against the floor, the other gripped the floppy straw sun hat and folded it against her chest.

"You're being morbid," Zoe's voice pulled her from her concentration, causing her to flinch. Ophelia let out a surprised coo and leapt off the bed. She jingled as she trotted towards Zoe. Corey's green eyes flew open, locking on the brunette that stood in her doorway. "Okay? She's not dead."

"And who are _you_ to tell me my girlfriend isn't dead?" Corey tilted her head. Her hands moved to her lap as she sat up taller. She fiddled with the brim of the hat between her fingers as she looked at the brunette, her jaw flexing. She tried to keep her anger in, to keep her emotions bottled inside of her, but every inch of her wanted to burst completely. Her eyes moved down to the cat that pressed herself against Zoe's legs incessantly.

"I mean, other than the girl who couldn't keep an eye on her at a _fucking_ frat party." The venom was there. It latched onto her words and found its way into the cracks of the brunette's already weak armor. Zoe let out a huff as she shook her head, her hands slamming down against her sides in frustration.

"Look," she sighed. Her tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip. She crossed her arms over her chest as she leaned against the door frame. "Just because Nan can't hear her doesn't mean she's gone. I mean, we should be out _looking_ for her!"

"Zoe," Corey let out a soft groan. Her shoulders slumped as she tilted her head to look up at the other girl. "I watched Fiona slit her throat with a letter opener. The same one she keeps in her purse and carries with her everywhere she goes. I _saw_ her die. I felt that last breath leave her body. I felt my own chest falter when hers collapsed." If she didn't say Madison's name, she didn't have to face that harsh reality once again. That she'd seen exactly what had happened to her girlfriend, lived through it, felt it, and she couldn't do a single thing to stop it. The brunette's mouth opened and closed, her brow furrowed.

"H-how? If you saw that then why didn't you tell the Council?" Zoe took a step into the room, the panic seeping through her voice. Corey let out a laugh, her head shaking.

"Your _mind's eye_ can't be used in a court of law. Witchy _or_ otherwise." She tilted her head. Her ponytail drifted to the side as she remained seated. "Something about having potentially altered memories and no way to allow others to see them or some shit." She watched as Zoe tried to scramble for the right way to respond. She could smell the wafting stench of alcohol that oozed from the redhead as she continued to move closer. The jingle of the bell on Ophelia's collar let out a soft noise as the cat quietly followed the brunette.

"I— I want to help." She seemed genuine, so much so that Corey pulled the bottle of absinthe from behind her and offered it. She wiggled the glass bottle in front of Zoe's face, a cocky grin gracing her features.

"Well then witch up," she raised her brows at the newest addition, still seated within the circle on the floor. Both girls had a personal connection with the deceased, one more-so than the other. Corey _hoped_ this would mean a higher probability of contacting Madison. As their fingers brushed, Corey held in a gasp.

_Misty._

_Kyle._

_The swamp._

"Misty's alive?" The redhead asked. Her brow furrowed as her eyes scanned back and forth. "How's that possible?" Zoe looked confused as she pulled the bottle of absinthe towards herself. She hesitated, not sure if she should take a sip as she tried to understand what had just happened.

"You tricked me!" The brunette's eyes grew wide. An accusatory finger pointed towards the redhead as her brows furrowed in anger. "You used your magic touch thing on purpose!" Corey let out a laugh through her nose, her eyes rolling at Zoe's tone.

"I have just as much control over my _sight_ as I do the woman I love." The redhead froze. The smug expression immediately wiped itself from her features at the moment the words left her lips. She looked at Madison's belongings, her eyes watering again at the collection before her. They moved from the pile to the black cat who watched her with a tilted head. She wasn't paying attention to the fact that Zoe was watching her crumble.

Corey's bottom lip trembled. It was more than the light quiver she'd managed to hold in with the help of the slight intoxication that had carried her throughout the previous week. She couldn't control the twitching of her lips as the tears started flowing down her cheeks. Unsure if the reaction was amplified by the addition of alcohol or if it was due to the words being spoken aloud for the first time, she panicked.

In the end, it wasn't Stevie, or even Madison, that she said the words to first. It was the nagging witch; the consistent thorn in her side; the black widow who couldn't keep her mouth shut and _cracked under pressure_. She looked down at her outstretched palms, a shrug of her shoulders accompanying her struggle to breathe.

"I love her, Zoe." One slow, trembling hand pressed against her lips as she coughed out her sobs. The brunette dropped down to rest on one knee as she watched the redhead fold into herself. The girl's knees pulled against her chest as her opposite hand pressed against her forehead.

"I love her, and I never told her. And now I never will." Cautiously, Zoe placed the corked bottle of absinthe against the floor. She made sure to not disturb the protective circle around them as she moved into the other girl's personal space. She wrapped her arms around the sobbing redhead, trying to find the right way to comfort her.

"No," the brunette said simply. "No. We'll find her." She cradled the shell of a witch, the completely broken and hollow frame of the woman she once was. "We're going to find Madison, I promise." She rested her chin against the top of the musician's head. Her arms were a pair of serpents slithering around the shattered pieces of Corey and constricting them back into place.

The only things that held her together were the alcohol adhesive in her veins and Zoe's tight embrace. Even now, in this position, Corey was completely and utterly broken. She was lost, the feeling of having no other reason to exist washing over her.

She wanted her pain to go away, to just disappear. She couldn't let it, though. She couldn't just completely give up. Become some empty vessel for the sake of the coven or her mother. She was human, to an extent, and humans had to live and breathe their worst emotions.

Even when that meant that they had to live with knowing that the path could've diverged and branched off if they had just stepped forward when Fiona had returned.

Especially if it meant that Madison could've still been alive if she'd just told someone, anyone, about own her budding powers.


	20. twenty

TWELVE DAYS. TWELVE LONG, AGONIZING DAYS of going through the motions of life without really living through them. Twelve days of consistently trying and failing through every option the girls could think of to bring Madison home.

After everything, it wasn't the spirit board, or Ophelia, or their _ancestors,_ or their magic that brought Corey to her. It was the blow flies that trickled throughout the house. The blow flies that led up through a hidden passageway through the walls. The blow flies that gathered en masse around the door frame of a secret room on the hidden third floor. Spalding's quarters— the reason why he was capable of traveling through the estate silently and without notice.

Zoe couldn't handle the stench that oozed from the cracks around the door. She pinned her shirt against her face in an attempt to deflect the lingering death. She coughed and gagged, taking a step backwards. "Shouldn't we go find someone? I mean, now that we've found—"

"No," Corey spun around to face the brunette, her eyes wild. "The moment Spalding knows we've been up here, he'll find somewhere else to put her." A chill ran down her spine as something inside the room called to her. She turned back around to face the door. Her hand hovered over the round antique doorknob in hesitation.

Whatever it was beckoned to her, urging her to follow through no matter what she was going to find on the other side of that door. She let out a slow, shaky breath as she closed her eyes. The fear grabbed hold of her. It was something she had no idea would come after spending so long trying to find Madison.

Corey swore she could hear the blonde's voice; a quiet _"would you hurry the fuck up already?"_ quipped in the actress's impatient tone. She slowly opened her eyes and braced herself for whatever could possibly be on the other side of the door. She turned the knob slowly, the caution still there within her movements. The hinges let out a ghostly groan as she pushed the old wood out and away from herself.

"Ugh," Zoe vocalized her disgust. She lurched forward as she tried to pin the fabric of her shirt closer to her face. It was the wall of stench that hit them first. Corey squinted as if it was a visible wafting entity and she couldn't see through it. She heard Zoe cough behind her and rolled her eyes.

To their left, a wall of old, grime coated dolls caught Corey's attention. Her eyes scanned the large collection, landing on the life sized porcelain doll that rested against the floor. She closed her eyes briefly. Her mouth contorted into a disgusted frown as she moved into the room. She could tell that she wasn't looking in the right direction, but the antique tea set further along the wall sent a shudder down her spine.

Sticks of lit incense were scattered around, a grossly failed attempt at blocking out the stench of decay. The silent beckoning of the tether brought Corey to a large wooden trunk. It was long enough to hold a tiny, frail, five-foot-two-inch blonde. She swallowed hard, her lips quivering as she shook her head.

She stood there for a moment, favoring the silence and uncertainty over what she knew would be inside of the decorative trunk at her feet. She watched as Zoe leaned forward and cleared the stuffed animals off of the storage box for Spalding's most recent addition to his collection. The brunette crouched down, her palms pressed against the lid to lift it. She stopped, however, when she felt Corey's hand on her shoulder.

The redhead remained silent as Zoe turned to look at her. A shake of her head was all that the girl needed to understand that she shouldn't be the one to open the trunk. She nodded, slowly rising as she brushed the dust off her knees. Corey took a deep breath, stepping forward before letting her fingers push apart the seam of the weighted lid. She separated it from the base. The loud creaking wail of the rusted hinges caused her to grind her teeth slightly.

Zoe gasped. Her hand clasped over her mouth as her eyes locked onto the contents of the trunk before her. Corey refused to look down. Her eyes instead searched the ceiling above her, trying to find anything else to look at. The faint smell of Chanel Nº5 and menthol cigarettes tickled her nostrils. It caused her eyes to water, which forced her to bite down on her lower lip to keep herself from breaking right then and there. She heard a scuffle behind them and immediately spun around. The anger was painted across her face within a beat.

Spalding lunged forward. His arms reached out to grab Zoe while she was focused on the wooden trunk. Corey's nose twitched, her jaw rolling forward in anger as she pushed her arm towards the man. Immediately, he was sent flying backwards. He clattered against the floor to ceiling collection of porcelain dolls. A staggering number from the top shelf tipped over and tumbled on top of him, shattering against him and the floor around him as he struggled to stand.

Corey hesitated slightly, confused as to how what was once Madison's own power had left her fingertips. She looked to her hands with furrowed brows. Her bottom lip trembled uncontrollably as she felt her eyes begin to water. She was lost for a moment in her own head, the 'what-ifs' spinning through her mind. The sound of Zoe's voice pulled her back into reality.

"Holy _shit!"_ Zoe squeaked. Her other hand clasped against the first as her eyes grew wide. "Corey, what the _fuck_." Her words were muffled behind her palms, taken aback by the situation unfolding in front of her. The redhead's face grew stone-like in an instant, all emotion falling from her features.

"I could fucking _kill you_," Corey took a step forward. She ignored the brunette at her side as she redirected her attention once more. All of her anger— her frustration, her unrest, her pure disdain for the grimy, unsettling man in front of her— was being unloaded on the butler who claimed Madison as his _play thing_.

"I _should_ fucking kill you." Her left hand moved, outstretched. It pinned Spalding down against his toys as Corey brought her right hand up towards her face. Her fingers flexed outward as the ball of flames flickered from her palm that remained close to her body.

"Corinna, don't!" Zoe's hand latched onto the redhead's bicep, grabbing her attention as she pulled her back slightly. "He's not what's important right now." Corey's shoulders relaxed as she took in a deep breath. She swallowed hard, her sad eyes moving between Spalding and the brunette at her side.

"You're right," the redhead nodded in response. The flames from her palm died down as she let her hands drop to her sides. As Zoe let go of her arm, Corey turned back to the wooden trunk. Again, she was pulled towards it, the unbroken tether still strong even though the blonde's powers were muted, if not gone all together.

She stepped towards the trunk cautiously, her breathing shaky. She could hear Zoe restraining Spalding behind her, making sure he couldn't get back up and interrupt them once again. She closed her eyes, the feeling of floating returning to her as she continued to move back in the direction of the storage space. When she opened her eyes, she immediately felt her knees give out underneath her.

Madison's porcelain skin was now a dull, veiny grey-purple. The blood that pooled in the gash across her neck created by Fiona was a gelatinous black; a thick tar pooling from ear to ear. Corey's small, frail, delicate, doe-eyed _human doll_ was tucked away out of sight. The redhead reached inside the trunk. Her body shook vigorously as she tugged back the blanket that Spalding had used to tuck the blonde in.

The gasp that left her lips was audible. Her eyes focused on the arm that had been ripped from its socket and placed next to the girl. It was as if a child had broken their favorite toy and not wanted their parents to see what had happened. Zoe rushed to her side, immediately hearing the girl's panicked breathing.

"What is it?" She asked. She froze when caught the sight of what Corey had seen. "Oh, my _god_. How could that even happen?" She dropped to the redhead's side. Her eyes watered as she wrapped her arms around the musician. Corey buried her face in Zoe's comforting shoulder. She shook vigorously as she tried to calm herself down.

She contemplated whether or not she should grab ahold of Spalding's bare skin, knowing that touching Madison wouldn't show her what had happened. She decided against it. She felt as though she truly wouldn't be able to hold in her anger if she saw what the man had done to the actress.

She pulled back, swallowing hard. Her eyes scanned Zoe's face, trying to find the words to say. She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. The brunette furrowed her brow. Her head tilted as she made an attempt to figure out what the redhead was trying to say. Finally, the words slithered from her lips. Her voice was hoarse as she held back the tears that threatened to fall.

"Take me to Misty Day."

* * *

Incoherent screaming rang out from the shack near the stream. Corey furrowed her brow as she climbed out of the passenger side door of her truck. She had let Zoe drive. Her nerves had been too overwhelming and she couldn't get herself to follow directions, or really listen to anyone else, after finding Madison in the state that she was in. She decided against closing the door. Instead, she made an attempt at sneaking up to the dilapidated hut without disturbing whatever was happening inside.

"Hey! You stop that!" The angry voice of a woman called out over animalistic grunts. As Corey grew closer, she could hear the Stevie Nicks track playing on the radio in the background. She swallowed hard, able to hear the woman yell once again.

"Stop that! You don't want to piss me off!" The grunting came to a stop for a moment as the woman continued. "I could be your only friend!" The stomping of feet was accompanied by a loud yelp and the smashing of glass. Corey spun around, her brow furrowed as she looked at a panicked Zoe.

"What the _fuck_ is going on in there?" Her voice was a harsh whisper. The brunette's eyes only grew wider as the redhead trudged forward. Zoe was sure they were supposed to run _away_ from danger, not towards it.

"Kyle!" Misty's voice was calmer as she tried to collect herself. Still, the screaming continued. "Hey!" Corey and Zoe grew closer to the front door. The music came to an abrupt halt as the sound of furniture shattering rang out once more. Corey stepped through the open front door. Her eyes scanned the war zone she'd walked in on. She watched as Misty dropped to her knees.

"Why would you do that?" The blonde sobbed. From behind, she bore a striking resemblance to Corey's mother. The redhead furrowed her brow. She took a step back, slightly confused. Her head tilted slightly as she observed the interaction in silence. She watched for a moment before pushing further inside.

"Why—You—Wh..." Misty paused. She collected herself as she gathered the pieces of her radio. "You're just a big ol' monster." The floorboards creaked behind Corey as Zoe took a step inside.

"Oh, my god," her hands flew into her hair. Her brows furrowed as she took in the mess. Kyle charged towards her, and Corey took a hesitant step backwards. The redhead's hands flew up in front of her face to protect herself. Next to her, Zoe remained still as a naked zombie Kyle wrapped his arms around her waist and sobbed against her.

"So that's what you two built, then," Corey muttered. Her attention turned to Misty as the woman spoke, though she wouldn't look up from the pieces of the radio in her hands.

"Get him out of here," she sighed. "He broke Stevie." Corey's brows flicked upwards as a scoff left her lips. Misty looked up at her, a range of emotions crossing her features; anger, confusion, peaked interest. "Who are you?" She asked, Her head tilted to the side as her eyes narrowed at the redhead.

"Corinna," she let out a laugh. Quickly, she looked the blonde up and down. For a moment, she forgot why she'd arrived at the small shack that rest against the Louisiana swamp. Looking at Misty was like looking directly at a past version of her own mother. The hair, the clothes, the makeup, the facial structure— all were reminiscent of a _Fleetwood Mac_ era Stevie Nicks.

"Corinna Nicks. Daughter of the White Witch," she watched as Misty's shoulders fell. The information caught her off guard. It wasn't something she'd ever expected to hear in her lifetime. "And you're Misty Day."

"You know my name?" The blonde asked. The confusion warped its way into her features. She took in the modified version of Stevie Nicks that stood before her; the second generation of the witch she completely idolized. Corey smiled. She tried her hardest to hide the sadness in her eyes.

"It's hard to not know the name of a Salem witch wrongfully burned at the stake." Corey swallowed hard. Her head shook as she looked down at her hands. "I'm afraid I have to ask you for a favor." Misty rose from her seat on the floor, placing the broken pieces of her radio back against her makeshift nightstand.

"Someone I care deeply about was murdered. I'm afraid she may have been dead far too long for one witch's power to be enough to bring her back." Corey looked back up at Misty. She watched as the blonde contemplated the information she'd been offered. The swamp witch wiped her hands against her shorts, pursing her lips as she nodded.

"What's in it for me?"


	21. twenty one

COREY STOOD OVER THE WOBBLING WOODEN TABLE. This time— instead of grounding herbs and spices with a mortar and pestle for spells— her hands trembled as they pulled away the white sheet that covered Madison. She took in a deep breath, her shoulders rising as she stood taller. She swallowed hard and looked up at Misty. The blonde looked between the redhead and Zoe. The latter of the two secured a chain around Kyle, restraining him to a post in the farthest corner of the greenhouse.

"What can you do?" The brunette asked as she walked away from her zombie boyfriend. She moved to offer a reassuring hand to Corey. Instead, the redhead's hands found themselves weaving around Madison's locked fingers. Every inch of her body was set to become eternally doll-like unless they found a way to bring her back. Zoe's hands dropped to her sides with a sigh as she looked down at the actress. To her, the blonde didn't look restless, though she didn't seem to emit any peacefulness either.

Misty leaned close, taking in every inch of decay and rotted flesh. Her face trailed down the actress's abdomen, hovering only mere centimeters over her as she took in a deep breath, measuring her ability to bring the girl back by her sight and smell. Corey's breath caught in her throat as she watched the woman closely, forcing her bottom lip to remain still as Misty did her work. The woman sighed, leaning back into an upright position. Her gaze focused on the actress's face for a fraction of a second as she swallowed hard.

"I can help you dig a hole," she was matter-of-fact. Her eyes locked on the redhead planted across from her. Corey's brow furrowed as she blinked back her frustration. She could hear Zoe's shaky breath from the brunette's spot beside her as she tilted her head at the Cajun witch.

"She's already rotting. Plus, she's missing an arm," at Misty's quick detest of assisting in bringing Madison back, Corey's tongue slowly dipped out to drag across her bottom lip. Zoe leaned forward to speak but Corey's free hand raised to stop her, a silent plead to keep herself in check.

"I'm aware," the redhead nodded. "That's why I asked for your help." She leaned across the table, flicking away the extra fabric of the sheet that had covered Madison's severed limb. "There has to be a pumice or something that can be used as an adhesive. I don't trust Zoe's sewing skills after seeing Kyle."

"Hey!" The brunette scoffed, angrily folding her arms over her chest. "That was all Madison!"

"Have you seen his scars?" Misty rolled her eyes, her weight shifting. "You're not so hot with a needle and thread." She moved across the room, waving for the two witches to follow her towards the door. "Come on." Corey's hands fell to her sides. The disbelief rolled off her shoulders as her upper body turned to watch Misty.

Her angry eyes narrowed at the woman that looked so much like a younger version her mother. If Misty had known how much her idol had meant to the blonde— or vice versa— she would have agreed to help no matter the risks. Corey knew that for a fact.

"No," she stomped her foot. A gust of wind accompanied her bellowing voice. Misty stopped in her tracks, her brows raised at the redhead. "You have the power of resurgence." She paused. Her lip finally broke from the forceful hold she had over her emotions. Her own voice echoed in her mind, _don't let the other girls see you being such a softy. _She could feel the sobs that crept up the back of her throat, threatening to burst through her walls and overflow. "I can't do this on my own."

Misty stood taller, her shoulders squared as she moved towards Corey with a playful smirk across her lips. It was a look she had seen on Madison more times than she could count. The redhead swallowed hard, her breathing wavering as Misty pushed past her with her shoulder.

"Fine," the woman sighed. She pulled a jar of swamp mud from her bag. She knew she was going to help the redhead all along, but she needed to understand the urgency of the situation at hand. The questions had echoed through her mind from the moment Corey had told the woman her name.

_Who is this girl?_

_How truly important was it for her to help bring this complete stranger back?_

_What would happen to her if she refused?_

_Or decided her powers were better used elsewhere?_

_Would they think she was naïve because of her unquestioned assistance?_

_Were these people even who they said they were?_

_Who is this girl in the relation to the others?_

_What if this girl was too far gone?_

_What if they couldn't bring her back no matter how hard they tried?_

Misty slammed the jar of mud against the table closest to Zoe. Her eyes, however, remained locked on the musician. She shuffled to the opposite side of the table. Her focus moved to the actress that laid on the wobbling, uneven, table below her, though she looked up at Corey every once in a while. She grabbed Madison's loose, decaying limb with her bare hands.

"Hand me some of that mud," she nodded to the brunette who immediately did as she was asked. Corey looked at her with a furrowed brow, taken aback as she made a failed attempt to stand taller. She swallowed back her questions as they rose up her throat. Now wasn't the time to berate the witch that was helping without voicing her concerns.

Corey watched as Misty reset the girl's limb and slathered the swamp mud across the blonde's injuries; an attempt to seal the wounds as best as she possibly could. Her hands hovered over Madison's abdomen as Misty's fluttered around the girl's face. They both took in deep breaths as the woman's hands gently rested against the actress's cheeks.

Misty placed her cheek against Madison's, her ear against the girl's dry, cracked lips in an attempt to hear her take in a breath. Corey's hands pressed down against the blonde's abdomen. She could feel movement under her fingertips. Whatever made the actress its home was jittering and frantic, clearly unhappy over their abrupt eviction.

The swamp witch exhaled slowly. Her eyes squeezed shut in an attempt to breathe life back into the girl that rested between her palms. Corey felt the energy trickle through the girl's core and flutter up her arms. It sent a chill down her spine and she clenched her jaw as she shifted her shoulders to shake the feeling. Misty looked back at the other witch, her features worried as she shook her head.

"Too much death inside her," the blonde said sadly. Her gaze moved between Zoe and Corey as she pursed her lips. The redhead looked down at Madison, her brows furrowed as she clenched her jaw.

"No," she shook her head. The tears threatened to fall. "No, I won't give up that easily. I refuse." She looked to Zoe, the brunette already prepared and eager to help. She didn't have to vocalize her request. The girl immediately rushed to the opposite side of the table, her hands finding their place in between Corey's.

"I need you both to push," Misty said with a sad nod. Corey immediately felt the pressure of both sets of hands pressing down on the girl's abdomen. Underneath the vintage gown, millions of tiny feet ran rampant. What previously felt like hundreds of insect inhabitants under Madison's skin now felt like energy bubbling up and threatening to escape in any direction it could. Corey could feel the blonde beginning to convulse under their collective hands.

"Turn her head so she doesn't choke," she snapped. Her eyes moved from her own hands to Misty. The blonde nodded, immediately doing as she was told. The small tremors that had erupted through Madison's body came to a stop as she spat up the blood coated blow flies that had resided in her stomach. Zoe pulled back, a quiet _eugh_ escaping her throat as she recoiled.

"Keep pushing," Misty remained focused on the actress. She watched intently as the girl took in a few gasping, struggled breaths. Immediately, Zoe's hands returned to Madison's abdomen. The woman stabilized the blonde's shoulders as she began to rock in her spot against the table once again. Corey's eyes landed on Madison's face, her features contorting into concern and sorrow as she continued to press against the girl's stomach. Misty turned and nodded to the redhead, a sign that whatever they were doing was working.

"Keep her stable, please," Corey croaked. Her eyes moved from Madison's face to Misty's. The blonde nodded in response, holding the girl in place. Corey squeezed her eyes shut as she heard Madison begin to gag, struggling to catch her breath. Her hands trailed up the blonde's stomach. She pressed her palms in as she continued to push the death up and out of Madison in the only direction it could escape.

Madison began to cough, finally getting enough of a breath to allow her shoulders to rise. A small smile peaked out at the corner of Corey's lips, overly hopeful for a positive outcome. She swallowed hard as she watched the large cockroach hurry up and out of Madison's mouth as she continued to walk her pressed palms up the girl's center. Quickly, the last of the blow flies followed. As they did, Madison's eyes flew open.

Her right hand gripped the bottom of Corey's shirt as she let out a piercing scream. It was her final state before death, her cries swallowed and muted by the bubbling of the open wound across her throat. Zoe took a step back as Misty lifted the girl into an upright position. Corey's hands immediately found themselves gently pressed against both sides of Madison's face. At the immediate contact of live bare skin, the sight took hold.

_Madison flirting and playing pool, learning how to use concilium to her advantage._

_Looking to Fiona for approval, constantly wanting to be told that she's good enough._

_Laughing with Fiona in the back of a taxi, one arm dangling out the window with a lit pearl white cigarette between her fingers._

_Stumbling into the parlor, attempting to mimic the Supreme with a toss of her cellphone and failing._

_Finding comfort in the spot on the floor looking directly into Corey's office._

_The pain of Fiona's forceful fingers clenching over her frail hand._

_The panic, knowing there was no escape._

_Fiona angrily shaking the blonde's arm, her features and her voice full of anger and determination._

_Do it. Do it. Do it._

_Madison stepping back, finally able to free her hand and make an attempt to find safety._

_Hopeful that she can get out this situation alive._

_Sharp, quick pain across her throat._

_Unable to breathe, to yelp, to use her voice_

_Frantic hands fall against her throat, a worried Fiona struggling to hold in her crocodile tears._

Madison pulled herself into Corey's chest, her arms shaking as she finally caught her breath. The redhead stiffened for a fraction of a second before instinctively wrapping her arms around the blonde. Somehow, she'd seen more with her power than she had in the past. Madison never truly saw her own death coming. Part of her didn't believe that what the blonde had seen in the end was truthful, either.

She had known— from having seen the encounter from an outside perspective the night it happened— that Madison had been preoccupied with her own objectives: finding safety, getting away, surviving. The blonde shook against Corey's chest as she calmed down, the last of her coughs meeting the redhead's light, peachy, freckled skin. Misty continued to rub her palm up and down Madison's back, making sure everything that needed to be pushed out made its way through the proper exits.

"Holy shit," Zoe muttered. Her brows raised as she wrapped her arms around herself. "It worked." There was a light laugh that accompanied her quiet voice as she held herself in disbelief. Misty took a step back, a small smile on her face as she observed the girls in front of her. Madison leaned back, her gold eyes scanning Corey's face.

The redhead lifted a hand to cradle the side of the blonde's face as she took in a deep breath. She closed her eyes, basking in the small window of relief she allowed herself to feel in that moment. She felt Madison's hands pulling her closer, causing her eyes to flutter open. She used her thumb to push away the hair that fell into blonde's face; it clung to the blood that smeared itself across the girl's cheek.

When their lips connected it was gentle, gingerly. It took everything Corey had to hold herself back. She wanted to completely unfold. To let the blonde feel every emotion that she'd felt over the last two weeks without her. She wanted to display it all through her lips, a kiss filled with pain and despair, but she remained restrained.

Yes, she'd just watched everything that would usually send a shiver down her spine march out of her girlfriend who, before this moment, was nothing more than the butler's personal doll, but she couldn't have cared any less. She didn't notice the tears that had started streaming down her cheeks until it was too late.

"You're crying," Madison's voice was hoarse, no more than a croak that escaped her throat. Her fingers brushed away the other girl's tears with the pads of her thumbs. "Ugh, ew, and you have blood on your lips." Her nose scrunched. A crinkling sound emitted from the skin that cracked and flaked across her face. Corey smirked, a silent laugh escaping through her nostrils.

"And you have blood all over you, but you don't see me complaining." Her eyes narrowed at the blonde, a playful tone in her voice as she shook her head. There was a spark in her green eyes that had been absent without the other girl— something the coven as a whole had noticed as she fell through her escalating downward spiral.

Kyle let out a loud groan, the same tone and pitch as when he had been yelling inside of Misty's shack. His chains shook against the pillar, loudly clattering and clanging as he demanded attention. The four witches turned, their eyes landing on the zombie frat boy restrained in the corner.

"Oh _fuck_," Madison muttered. Her voice was barely a whisper. "It really _did _work." Her gaze landed on her feet before shifting to the ground beside her. She paused, shaking her head as Corey's hands rested against her sides. The redhead looked up at Misty. Her features had softened as she mouthed a silent 'thank you' to the other witch. The woman bowed her head, a single hand raised as a nicety.

"I need a cigarette." Madison let out a groan. One arm loosely snaked back around Corey's waist as she let her head thud against the girl's chest. The pout across the blonde's lips was heard in her voice; a cranky whine as if she was an overtired child. Within seconds, Corey was fishing the blonde's pack of cigarettes from the front pocket of her black stonewashed jeans. She flipped the pack open with one hand for the other girl to slowly remove a stick.

Corey lit the pearl white stick for the actress. She knew Madison wasn't strong enough to light it by herself. She was barely strong enough to hold her own head up against the other girl's chest without being almost completely supported by the musician. Corey rested her chin against the top of the blonde's head as Madison leaned all of her weight against her front. Her arms tightly hugged the fragile girl as one of the blonde's arms remained loosely draped around her side.

If it weren't for the musician, Madison would have nothing holding her in place. Nothing supporting her full weight only moments after resurrection. She didn't dare think about what else could have happened if it weren't for the other girl. Instead, she remained thankful that the redhead was able to find her, to find other witches to help her, knowing that it took the energy and power of three Salem witches to bring her back from the complete nothingness she had been trapped in.


	22. twenty two

THE SADDLE BAG OVERFLOWED WITH FOOD AND DRINK, things that Misty had claimed as collateral, as the Cajun girl followed closely behind the redhead. Her brow furrowed as she looked around Corey's office. She could feel the change in the atmosphere that suddenly surrounded her in comparison to that of the rest of the academy. Her eyes locked on the single photo frame that sat on the dark oak desk, her features relaxing as she reached out to pick it up. Corey didn't panic or hurry to put it away. Instead, she let the woman hold it in her hands as she took to rummaging through the drawers against the wall.

Misty's fingers traced the photo protected by a delicate pane of glass. She let out a soft sigh as she took in the image of the trio laughing, smiling, enjoying each other's company. Her suspicions were confirmed with one simple glance at the frame in her hands; Corey was exactly who she said she was.

"You two belong together," the woman said simply. Her eyes flicked up to land on Corey's confused face. The redhead gave the other witch a sad smile when Misty wiggled the frame towards her, quickly accompanied by an obligatory nod. She swallowed hard, finally finding what she was looking for.

The sound of the younger witches arguing over what was going on filtered into the room as Zoe clamored down the stairs after putting Madison to bed. The three young girls bickered back and forth as they tried to figure out what they were going to tell the Supreme.

"Better yet," snapped Queenie. She was following Zoe down the hallway with an angry thud. "What are we going to tell _Cordelia?"_

"It's not our place to tell anyone _anything_," Zoe snapped back. Her hushed, annoyed tone followed her defensive demeanor. It wasn't her problem to solve, though she knew she would have done the same if she were in Corey's shoes— or would it be considered _Corey's_ _cloak?_ The redhead cleared her throat.

"Thank you," Corey stood up from her spot on the floor where she had previously been rummaging elbow-deep through her belongings. The old hand-me-down radio felt heavy in her grasp. "For helping me bring her back." She shook her head, struggling to keep her emotions in check. She took in a deep breath, able to feel the blonde's eyes on the device in front of her.

"Is that," Misty pointed an outstretched finger. The smile on her face completely contradicted her furrowed brow. "Is that for me?" Corey let out a laugh, nodding. She took a step forward, closing the distance between them as Misty placed the frame back on the desk beside her.

"I know it isn't much, but it was my mother's," she shrugged. Corey struggled to make eye contact with the woman who had done so much more for her than she could have ever imagined. "I saw what Kyle did to yours, and I couldn't let you go back home without a replacement." Misty reached out and took the radio in her own hands, her gaze moving back and forth between the radio and the redhead.

"Stevie's radio," Misty's bottom lip slipped between her teeth as she held in the squeal that threatened to escape the back of her throat. "I can't believe I'm holding _Stevie Nicks' _radio." Corey could see the extra bounce and giddiness in the woman's stature as she held the device in her hands.

"We have extra beds if you'd like to stay," Corey tilted her head at the older witch. Her hands awkwardly fiddled with her fingers at her waist as she bit the inside of her cheek. "Zoe mentioned that you were _looking for your tribe_?" She paused as Misty looked up at her, the smile wiped from her face. "A—and Cordelia would love to have you around," she shrugged. She tried to find a way to convince the other witch to stay with them.

"I was," Misty nodded. Her sad eyes focused on the floor for a moment. "And I am, but this ain't it." She shifted her weight, looking up at Corey once more. "I just got bad vibes; there's something foul in this house." Corey nodded, swallowing hard.

"Understood," she said. She knew the darkness that loomed over the academy. She felt it around Spalding and Fiona and Hank, when the latter decided to show his face. She wondered if Misty was safer out on the bayou, away from Fiona's uncontrolled need to snuff out the next Supreme.

"Zoe can take you home when you're ready, but my offer still stands." Misty gave the redhead a slight smile, her head tilted to the side as she pulled the radio against her chest.

"Much appreciated," she nodded once. She cleared her throat as she reached into the bag that rest against her side. "_T-Maddie's_ gotta get that mud washed off before bed and slap more on come mornin'." Corey raised her brows, her eyes wide for a moment as she digested the words that had come from Misty's lips. The blonde pulled out a new jar of mud, holding it out for the redhead to take.

"Right," she swallowed hard. Her eyes narrowed as she took the jar in her hands. "I'll make sure she takes care of it, thank you." She gave Misty a small smile as she looked at the jar for a moment. She cradled it away from her body as if it was an infant she had never held before. She pulled it closer to herself, tucking it safely underneath her arm against her side.

"Speaking of, I should head upstairs and make sure she gets cleaned up." She pointed towards one of the open doors behind the older witch. Her head nodded in the direction of the hallway as she stepped away. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding in as she brushed past Zoe and the other witches in the hall.

"Corinna!" She could hear Cordelia calling for her from upstairs, assuming the redhead had locked herself in her room. "What is that _vile_ stench coming from under your door?" She threw her head back as she climbed the staircase, a groan leaving her lips.

"Fuck," she muttered the word, only loud enough to be able to hear it herself. She sighed as she calmed herself down, taking in a deep breath as she continued to ascend the staircase. "It's nothing, Dee," she called out. She silently hoped that Madison had locked the door when Zoe left her in the bedroom alone. That the girl had remembered it wasn't _just_ the rest of the coven that she needed to be protected from.

"I'll take care of it." Her shoulders fell as she caught Hank trying to pop her bedroom door open. "Really?" She groaned, her head falling to the side as he froze in his place.

"We thought—" Corey rolled her eyes. Cordelia's angry brow focused on her husband beside her.

_"We thought," _she chirped back. her own voice mocked his. Again, she groaned. "_You_ thought, Hank." She moved to push past him but he blocked her path. "Delia wouldn't invade my privacy," her eyes landed on the blonde who refused to meet her gaze. "Or is the mutual trust between us broken because I won't let up on what I _saw?"_ Corey reached out to grab the doorknob, something she should have thought twice about before doing.

"Hey!" Hank snapped. His hand wrapped around the girl's wrist in anger as he stopped her. The moment skin touched skin, she saw everything she never wanted to see about the man. Every negative feeling she ever had about her friend's husband was amplified ten-fold.

She wanted to use her powers to throw him off her; cause him to catch fire; make him forget how to breathe; let him suffocate in front of her for hurting Cordelia and not having the nerve to own up to what he did.

"Don't you _dare_ talk to her like that." The redhead ripped her free hand away from him. Her face contorted as she tried not to gag at the images that burned themselves into her brain.

"God, you're _disgusting_," she groaned. She held back her urge to hit the man, knowing that Cordelia wouldn't have the power to stop her. Part of her felt like Hank deserved to suffer for letting the Headmistress and the rest of the coven believe that he was the family man he claimed to be. Her nose scrunched involuntarily as she shook her head.

"I can't believe you would do that shit." Though, she never would have put it past him. He reeked of an unfaithful, lying, altruistic aura from the moment they met.

"Corey?" Cordelia's voice was a whisper. The concern etched itself into her features. She could have dropped the jar, let it shatter against the floor as she tore into her friend's husband. Instead, she swallowed hard, taking a step back as she sized up the man in front of her.

"You think you're untouchable, don't you?" She let out a huff as she shook her head and swallowed down the lump that refused to leave her throat. "Masking your fucking escapades as business trips and trade deals." She rolled her jaw, noticing Cordelia recoil from the corner of her eye. Hank visibly panicked, taking a shaky step back.

"You've been gifted the sight?" The blonde tried her best to hold in her gasp. Her brow furrowed as she stared at Corey.

"What'd you see?" Hank demanded. His gaze hovered on Cordelia before his attention returned to the redhead. Corey let out a brief laugh, her arms crossing over her chest. She tapped the jar against her side anxiously.

"Who's the redhead with the terrible dye job?" She answered his question with a question of her own. Her eyes narrowed. She watched the man's face fall at her words. Corey knew she should've waited to have the conversation, but she needed to the couple away from her door. "And don't say my name, because you may be fucking me over, but I _know_ you aren't _fucking_ me." She shrugged, the emotion void from her tone.

"For someone trying to have a kid I would've thought you were better than that." Cordelia pivoted at the girl's words, taking off in the direction of her own room. Hank quickly followed, calling after the Headmistress. With a sigh of relief, Corey's shoulders fell. She dug into her pocket for her keys. Before she could procure the keyring, she heard the click of the lock on the other side of the door.

Corey quickly turned the doorknob and ushered herself inside her bedroom. She locked the door behind her, not entirely paying attention to the blonde that rested with her back pressed against the side of the bed. She moved across the room, gracefully gliding through the open bathroom door.

Madison rubbed the fingers of one hand against her temple, her brows furrowed as she sat on the bedroom floor. Her other hand caressed the back of the cat in her lap. Ever so faithful Ophelia, the anchor that held her favorite person against the floor. The blonde's legs were crossed in front of her, a proper bed for her feline friend, as she tried to recall what had happened. The last thing she truly, completely remembered was being in the back of the taxi with Fiona. Everything after that, everything that led up to waking up on a slab of poorly supported wood in the greenhouse, was completely missing.

"Was I in a car crash?" She called into the bathroom attached to Corey's bedroom. Her hand fell from the side of her face and found itself nestled under Ophelia's chin. The redhead let out a light laugh, her head shaking as she walked back into the room. As the door knocked against tile, the sound of running water echoed against the bare walls.

"Not quite," she sighed. Her head tilted at the girl on the floor. "Though, maybe it's a good thing you can't remember right now." She knelt down, offering a welcoming hand to the blonde.

"I think that mud has been on your arm long enough to have worked it's magic." Corey gave the other girl a smile. When Madison refused to stand up, her brow furrowed. "I'm not going to hurt you, Maddie," she said, her voice soft.

"No, I know," the blonde shook her head. Her eyes remained locked on the cat in her hands. She found comfort in the ball of black fluff as she tried to find a way to explain how she felt. "It's just a lot right now." She shrugged, swallowing hard. "Everything is a lot right now." Her words were quiet, her own fear of breaking taking over.

"Then we do everything your way," Corey's outstretched hand softly patted against Madison's bare thigh. Ophelia stood in a stretch, leaving the blonde's lap vacant and cold. She looked up slowly as Corey continued. "You're in charge, every step of the way." Green eyes locked with gold ones, a small smile peeking at the corners of Madison's lips.

"Sit in the tub with me?" Corey could see the sadness and confusion in the girl's golden orbs, the flecks of darkness overtaking the light. She squeezed the girl's thigh lightly, her other hand moving to tuck a stray hair behind Madison's ear.

"Anything for you," she hummed.


	23. twenty three

**_2013_**

MADISON SANK IN THE PORCELAIN TUB, her back pressed against Corey's chest. She let out a sigh as the redhead wrapped her arms around her shoulders, pulling her close. A soft hum left the other girl's lips as Madison tucked her head against the crook of her neck. The bubbles that created a barrier between their upper bodies and what rested below the water soothingly ruptured against their skin as they brushed up against each other.

Madison took in a deep breath of cinnamon and cedar, the scent only aiding in calming her nerves post-resurrection. She let one hand emerge from below the protective bubble wall. It snaked upward, her fingers coming to loosely intertwine with Corey's. The blonde placed a light kiss against the other girl's neck before pulling their connected hands closer to her face. She rested her chin lazily against their locked fingers, lost in her own thoughts.

"What's on your mind?" Corey asked. The water around them sloshed as she adjusted the way she had been sitting. The puddle that began to form against the floor let out an audible _plop_ as the stuttering stream of excess bubble bath dripped from the edge of the claw foot tub. She heard the sigh that left Madison's nostrils and leaned forward. Her arm that remained underneath the water continued to hold the blonde against her protectively.

Madison pursed her lips, shaking her head. She didn't want to voice her feelings. She didn't want Corey knowing that she couldn't _feel_ anything. In the time it took the other witch to settle things with Misty, Madison was an empty void. Not only could she not remember anything, but she couldn't feel anything either. She hoped it would pass, that it was just a symptom of being brought back from her cold, callous, lonely death.

She felt the goosebumps flutter out across her shoulder blades as Corey's lips danced across her skin. She shuttered slightly. Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth, the playful smirk quickly emerging from behind the knuckles of their entwined fingers. Madison felt the kisses that led up to her ear as the redhead giggled at the trail of rippled skin she left behind. The blonde shook her head with a laugh, the thought of not feeling _anything_ quickly leaving her mind.

"I was thinking about that time Z helped Liv sneak me on set." She made something up on the spot. It was the earliest memory she could come up with on such short notice. Madison felt the giggle in her throat as she spoke, the feeling of Corey's fingertips gliding up her side catching her off guard. She swallowed hard as the other witch's breath tickled her earlobe. She tilted her head back to let out a soft laugh, granting the other girl easier access to her jawline. "Do you remember that?"

"How could I forget?" Corey asked. Her eyes locked on the slab of mud across Madison's jugular. She swallowed hard. Her mind shifted to focus on revenge instead of a playful memory. Corey cleared her throat, trying to shake the thought from her head.

She pulled a damp washcloth across Madison's shoulders, dispelling the uniform numbness from the blonde's back. Everywhere she touched left a flickering flame against the blonde's porcelain skin, or so Madison thought. Her body reacted to every touch, every breath, every look.

"I know that's not really what you were thinking," Corey sighed. Her head shook as she gently scrubbed the mud from Madison's shoulder. "You know I won't push it, but sometimes I wish I had even a sliver of Nan's powers... Just to know what's going on inside your head." She placed a kiss against Madison's temple as the blonde silently nodded.

"I'll make you something to try and get rid of these scars," Corey's finger ran across the divot in the blonde's shoulder that was left behind after the mud had been washed away. "For now we just have to keep applying the mud until this is fully healed." Madison cleared her throat. Her lips pursed as she tried to keep the not-so-kind words she had to say about the Headmistress from escaping. She looked upset, as if the thought of looking somewhat alive again offended her.

"What'd I say?" The redhead's face cracked. The smile fell from her lips in an instant. She was worrisome, unable to detect what she'd done wrong to upset the other girl. The blonde wouldn't admit that she was jealous of the bond that Corey had with Cordelia. Nor would she admit that she, at times, felt second best when it came to the older woman. She had already voiced her opinion on the matter once. The need to say it again made her feel like she was talking to a wall.

"Maddie," Corey's brow furrowed in confusion. Her eyes scanned the blonde's face. She watched as the girl's eyes became watery. The words bottled themselves up and attempted to force themselves out another route. It was usual for Madison to become overly emotional when she was holding things in and, every time Corey caught it, it completely broke her heart. She let her tongue dart out to wet her lips quickly as she wrapped both arms around the porcelain girl.

"It's nothing," Madison's voice wavered as her focus shifted to the bubble bath. She could feel the butterfly-like nervousness in her stomach as the redhead's arms brushed against her skin and held her tightly.

"Just worried, baby, that's all." She could feel Corey's heart flutter as the pet-name left her lips. Madison let her shoulders submerge under the water as she rested her head against Corey's bare chest. She looked up at the redhead, a small smile peeking from the corner of her lips as green eyes locked with gold.

"Okay," Corey nodded. The blonde's smirk mirrored her own. She removed one bubble-covered hand from under the water to tuck a loose hair out of the other girl's face. Once again, her gaze locked on the healing gash across Madison's throat. She could feel the anger bubbling up in her core. She blamed herself; she always would.

She contemplated whether or not she should step forward as the next Supreme now that there was already one casualty. If the coven lost another witch, Corey wouldn't be able to live with herself. She knew the argument that would come from making herself known. Madison would never let her live with a target on her back.

The blonde leaned forward, a soapy hand rising from the water to cradle Corey's face. Both girls could feel their hearts threatening to burst from their chests as their lips connected and their eyes fluttered shut. She hoped Madison felt the same yearning, the same burning, the same passion. Corey would never grow old of the feeling that being with the blonde gave her.

* * *

**_2012_**

The cast was delirious. They'd spent the last nine hours on set working with the extras to finish filming b-roll for their previous outdoor scenes. As Josh and Ezra were in the midst of a competition to see who could chug a bottle of water the fastest, Corey and Olivia struggled to get through their final scene together as Daphne and Velma.

They were curled up against the mattress in Velma's bedroom, a single camera attached to a crane hovering above them. For the continuity of the script, they were reminded that the gang had just split off and returned home after unmasking that season's monster: a bankrupt logger trying to scare investors away from his property. They had heard the iconic line muttered from his lips, _"And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for those meddling kids!"_

In reality, they'd just returned from rehearsing in Olivia's trailer. They'd mapped out their movements as well as they could, but it seemed like they were too forced; too robotic; too cliché. Olivia wasn't entirely comfortable with the scene and it was noticeable on camera. On their last take, the one the director kept in the final edit of the episode, Corey made an attempt to take charge of the scene. What should have taken a maximum of fifteen minutes to film had turned into an hour long shoot with twelve separate takes. The redhead was exhausted. She pushed through each reshoot of the scene to the best of her abilities.

"Lucky number thirteen," a sigh left her lips as they reset the scene once again. She watched Olivia from the corner of her eye as the cameras that surrounded them moved back to their initial marks. The brunette held the book over her face once again, blocking her large framed glasses from the view of the camera hoisted above them.

Corey's eyes fell to watch Olivia's clenched jaw and she wondered if her orange turtleneck was just as uncomfortable as the green silk scarf tied around her own neck. She kept her hands at her center as she rolled back from her side, trying her best not to stare at the girl until the director called action. She could hear the soft patter of Olivia's heart racing against the comforter in the otherwise quiet soundstage.

"Just follow my lead," Corey whispered. The brunette nodded beside her. She swallowed hard as she let a hand fall to her face to adjust the glasses against the bridge of her nose. It wasn't long before the overzealous man in the director's chair let his voice echo against the partial walls of the room around them. As soon as the word left his lips— the booming _action!_— they were pulled back into the universe they played so effortlessly within.

Corey thought she could hear the crickets, the imaginary background noise to set the scene. She knew it was her mind playing with her, but she swore that she was within the four walls of Velma's bedroom in Coolsville. She paid no mind to the cameras that circled around them.

"Hey, Velma?" She asked, looking up at the would-be ceiling. Her hair sprawled out against the pillow underneath her. "Why did you save me?" As the sound of the other girl turning the page of the graphic novel within her hands filled the room, _Daphne's_ tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip.

"What do you mean?" The brunette's brows raised as she voiced her question. She tapped her finger against the spine of the book as she awaited_ Daphne's_ scripted response. An anxious air filled the room, the two girls playing off one another's plotted tension.

"At the sawmill, when Fred froze..." The redhead paused. She rolled over onto her side to let her eyes scan _Velma's_ face. She looked for any sign of the other girl faltering. "I could have died but you saved me. Why?" She propped herself up against her elbow as she looked over at the other girl. Her brows raised slightly as she awaited any sign to continue.

"Isn't that what friends are for?" _Velma_ let her eyes flicker from the book's pages for a moment. The girls locked eyes for a fraction of a second before she turned the page once again. She didn't want it to be known that she wasn't truly paying attention to the book in her hands, but she didn't want the tension between them to grow any more either.

"Is that all we are? Just friends?" _Daphne's_ brows furrowed within a beat. She quickly realized that _Velma_ was avoiding a conversation they needed to have. _Daphne's_ feelings were on the line, and she needed to be sure that they were both on the same page before she attempted to push things in a direction that wasn't welcomed by both parties in question.

"Velma, look at me." She ripped the book away from the brunette. A gasp left the girl's lips as she shot upright, reaching for the conversation blocker in _Daphne's_ grasp. The redhead leaned so that she could be seen by the other camera in the shot. Throughout the entire altercation, she kept the cameras in the back of her mind. The last thing she wanted was yet another reshoot.

The camera crane that had hovered above moved with them. They were practically nose to nose. A full frame headshot of both girls could be seen in the viewfinder. If either girl turned towards the director, breaking the delicate fourth wall, they would see the producers and crew— along with a familiar face that wasn't usually around on set— waiting with baited breath.

"Hey! I was reading that." _Velma's_ bottom lip jutted out in a frustrated pout. _Daphne_ rolled her eyes as she tucked the book underneath herself. It was purposefully moved out of reach from the other girl, forcing her to have a conversation _Daphne_ could tell was already far too difficult to initiate.

"And you can _finish_ reading it later, now, answer my question." The girls were merely inches apart. _Velma_ had stopped short as _Daphne_ turned back to face the brunette.

The gulp that rang out from Olivia's throat caught Corey off guard. Her eyes flicked to focus on the other girl's lips before moving back to scan her face for a moment. Corey could feel eyes on her, burning into the side of her skull, but she wouldn't break character. She'd been working far too hard to just ruin the scene this late in the game.

Her breath caught in her throat as she felt the mattress shift underneath her. Corey hadn't expected Olivia to skip scripted dialogue, but she had. In the time it took her to realize what was going on, the brunette's lips were already connected to her own. She felt the other girl's fingers graze against her cheek. Corey's hands moved to grab hold of Olivia's elbows but instead she froze, her fingers flexing as she held her breath.

After a moment, the initial shock washed away and Corey was able to follow through. She matched Olivia's urgency and haste. In the back of her mind, she prayed that what they were providing matched what the director had been hoping for. The redhead's shoulders fell as the tension left her body. Her only worry became whether or not she would be able to remember her lines when the time came.

They broke apart to breathe, both girl's eyes fluttering open and locking on one another. Corey opened her mouth to move on to her next scripted line but couldn't manage to form the words. Olivia adjusted her glasses in an attempt to regain her composure, her breathing beginning to level.

"Did that answer your question?" The brunette asked. A light laugh left the redhead's lips as she looked at the other girl with her head cocked to the side. They jumped slightly at the booming sound of the director's voice once again— the short, distinct _cut!_ that pulled them back into the real world.

"That's a wrap on Daphne Blake for Season Three, ladies and gentlemen!" Corey let out a sigh of relief, her shoulders falling once again as the stage lights dimmed. The familiar head of blonde hair caught her attention. She watched as the blonde stood from where she had been sitting next to Josh and Ezra. The clicking of heels echoed closer to the soundstage as the girl moved.

"Madison?" Corey asked as she climbed off the edge of the bed. She narrowed her eyes, taking the bottle of water offered to her by the stagehand on her right. She could hear the sound of Olivia's laugh ring out from behind her, but all of her attention was on the blonde in front of her.

"Bet you thought I'd miss my _best friend's_ last day on set." Madison laughed. She quickly wrapped her arms around the taller girl's waist. "Thirteen takes, huh?" She muttered against the redhead's chest.

"Oh, _bite me_, Montgomery."


	24. twenty four

THE QUIET PLUCKING OF METAL STRING RANG OUT from the acoustic guitar as Corey sat on her bedroom floor, her back pressed against the cold wall. Madison slept on the bed across the room, an exhausted unmoving ball topped with the weight of a black cat. The musician took in a deep breath. Her mind wandered as she found a melody that fit the way she felt. She wanted to tell Madison the words she had so carelessly let slip in front of Zoe, but she couldn't bring herself to overwhelm the other girl so soon after her resurrection.

Instead, she let the blonde rest. She let Madison lay silently in the bed they occasionally shared as she let her real emotions flow through the tips of her fingers. She hummed to herself quietly before she found the words she was looking for.

"Make sure nobody sees you leave," she sighed. Her jaw rolled as she looked up at the ceiling above her. "Hood over your head, keep your eyes down." Her nose scrunched as she sang to herself quietly. "Tell your friends you're out for a run. You'll be flushed when you return." She could feel her face flinch involuntarily as she tried to maintain her volume. She kept her voice low, no more than a whisper over the sound of the guitar strings reverberating.

"Take the road less traveled by. Tell yourself you can always stop. What started in beautiful rooms ends with meetings in parking lots." Her volume picked up gradually as she squeezed her eyes shut. She lost herself in the melody, her emotions taking over and engulfing her ears in the combined sound of the instrument and her own voice. She couldn't hear the blonde shuffling in the sheets, barely awake but listening from afar.

Madison rolled over, causing Ophelia to let out a quiet huff. Her eyes squinted to catch a small glimpse of the redhead with her back pressed against the wall across from their bed. _Their _bed. It was foreign to Madison, having something they unwittingly shared. It came as second nature, something she never truly thought twice about in the long run. She listened as Corey's quiet voice made its way through the room.

"And that's the thing about illicit affairs, and clandestine meetings, and longing stares. It's born from just one single glance, but it dies and it dies and it dies a million little times." Corey sniffled. Her head tilted to the side to look out the glass double doors that led to the balcony.

She knew that, if anyone else in the coven had heard her playing, someone would enter the room and question her emotional state. She hadn't touched an instrument or hummed a single note in the twelve days that Madison had been missing. As far as Cordelia knew, the blonde was still nowhere to be found. She very well could have been in Los Angeles or New York City and no one would have had any clue.

"Leave the perfume on the shelf. That you picked out just for _him_, so you leave no trace behind like you don't even exist." Madison propped herself up on her elbow, trying not to strain her wounds. She tried her hardest to make out the redhead's figure from across the room but couldn't see more than the shadows that took over her.

"Take the words for what they are, a dwindling, mercurial high; a drug that only worked the first few hundred times." She watched as Corey's head bobbed back in her direction. Sitting upright, frozen, her eyes scanned the other girl from across the room. Madison knew Corey's eyes were closed. If they hadn't been, she would've stopped playing immediately.

"And that's the thing about illicit affairs, and clandestine meetings, and stolen stares. They show their truth one single time, but they lie and they lie and they lie a billion little times." Corey cleared her throat, an attempt to shake the emotion from her voice as she scrunched her nose. Her glasses shimmied down slightly as she let her head hang to look at the floorboards.

She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes as she opened them slowly. She took in the blemishes in the floor that surrounded her, a way to calm herself without breathing exercises or stopping herself from expressing her own raw emotions. She played the guitar a little louder across the bridge.

"And you wanna scream: don't call me _kid_, don't call me _baby_, look at this godforsaken _mess_ that you made me. You showed me colors you know I can't see with anyone else." Madison swallowed hard. Her shoulders fell as she watched the redhead. She could feel the rattle in her chest as she heard the words that flowed from Corey's lips.

"Don't call me _kid_, don't call me _baby_, look at this idiotic _fool_ that you made me. You taught me a secret language I can't speak with anyone else." Corey felt the hiccup of a sob threatening to escape from the center of her chest as she sang. Her bottom lip trembled. The thought of losing Madison returned even though the blonde was in the same room.

"And you know damn well, for you, I would ruin myself a million little times." The redhead's eyes drifted up towards the bed. Her breath caught in her throat as she realized Madison had been watching her. Slowly, her hands fell from the neck of the acoustic guitar. She sat up taller, her shoulders squaring as her eyes scanned the other girl from afar.

"It sounded really pretty," Madison spoke quietly. She picked at the comforter in her lap as she locked her sleepy gaze with Corey's panicked one across the room. She held in the sigh that threatened to leave her lips. "And I hope you don't really feel that way," she paused, swallowing hard.

"Like this is just some secret fling that's bound to end because we can't," she paused once more, trying to grasp the words floating around in her head. "Be _publicly_ open with what we have." Madison let her tongue dart out to wet her lips. She hoped she was voicing her concerns as delicately as she could but, if she was completely honest with herself, she was afraid.

She was afraid of her inability to feel comfortable with the possible backlash of coming out. She was afraid of losing her relationship because she wasn't ready to be public with that part of herself. She was afraid of what people would say after denying allegations for years just to say _by the way, you were right._

Corey could see the sadness in the other girl's face, the moonlight that illuminated the bed highlighted the other girl folding in on herself. Madison was letting her fears get the best of her, something Corey hadn't seen the blonde do in years. Her brow furrowed, trying to connect the possible dots that would lead the other girl to feel those things. When the realization clicked, it was etched into her features.

"Oh, no, no, no." Corey placed the guitar against the floor, quickly rising to her feet. She moved with soft thuds across the gap, bounding towards the large mattress in the middle of the bedroom. She hadn't meant to make the blonde feel as though she thought that they were temporary. Corey's eyes scanned the other girl from head to toe as she tried to find the right words to say. She was grasping at straws, her mouth growing dry as the panic truly set in.

"Maddie, that's not what I meant." She climbed into the bed. Her hands found themselves against the blonde's thigh in an instant. Madison's fingers gently intertwined with her own, a sign that the blonde was open to listening to the words she needed to say. Corey let one hand snake around the other girl's waist, pulling her against her own chest. She rested her chin against the top of the blonde's head as they leaned into each other.

The blonde nuzzled into Corey's side. She moved slightly as Ophelia found her nesting spot directly between the two of them. A content purr filled the awkward silence as small paws began to kneed against the weighted comforter. Madison let out a shaky breath as she looked at her hands, waiting for Corey to continue.

"I don't know how to explain myself, but I didn't mean it that way." _Yes you do_, she thought. _You know the exact words to say. Stop being a spineless baby and tell her how you feel._ She cleared her throat as Madison nodded against her chest. It was the only sign that the blonde had been listening to her words.

With every breath that the actress took in, her chest rattled. She was holding in her tears. Her bottom lip trembled at the reminder that what they had could never be public outside of what they already shared. The one thing the actress wanted more than anything was to be able to attend a gala with Corey as her date instead of someone her management had planted in her place.

"I," _love you_. She didn't say it. She couldn't say it. Corey couldn't understand why she was so afraid to say the words out loud. She had already said them once, but suddenly every time she tried to say them she panicked. Her chest tightened; her throat closed up; breathing became a struggle. She worked to take a single shaky breath in as she began to word-vomit.

"I didn't take your death very well, if you couldn't already tell." She let out a light laugh, as if they were sharing an awkward inside joke. "It wasn't your time to go, and I wasn't ready to let you go, and no one would believe me." She took in a deep breath as her chest finally relaxed just enough to inhale without struggle. Her jaw rolled as she tried to keep herself from crying. She'd done enough of that while Madison was gone.

"I spiraled. Hard. Everything I did was to try and get you back." She could feel Madison begin to hold her tighter. The blonde hadn't made a single sound, but she remained planted against Corey's chest, taking in the information provided to her. "When my cries for help were met with no response, I grew desperate. I turned off my phone early on. I was tired of receiving calls from management over deadlines and interviews when you were missing." There was an audible hiccup mixed with her words. She had assumed that the blonde had fallen asleep. Her breathing was level, her grip only as tight as the hand that held a fist full of her shirt.

"I was a mess. You were dead, and it was my fault. Fiona killed you _because_ of me." When the words left her lips, Madison's head snapped in Corey's direction. The blonde looked at her with angry, waterlogged eyes. Her eyes, somehow dulled from her short dance with death, shimmered with the tears that tried to force themselves out. They scanned Corey's face, searching for an explanation. Her memory was still foggy, still missing large chunks from the alcohol induced blackout.

Madison's jaw clenched as her brows furrowed. Her grey toned skin seemed to glisten in the moonlight. Corey swallowed hard, taking in the new details of the other girl that she hadn't seemed to notice in the days prior. The blonde's eyes had once been scattered with yellow and green flecks but were now a dullish rust brown. Her lips were turned downward in a frown.

The cracked portions of skin around the corners of her mouth struggled to heal themselves on their own. The scar across her throat bobbed up and down every time the girl swallowed; a perpetual Adam's apple; a reminder of Corey's failures to protect her. The redhead raised her hand to let her thumb trace the bottom of the healing gash across Madison's neck. The blonde's tongue dipped out to wet her lips as her features transitioned from anger to concern.

"Corinna, what are you talking about?" Her voice cracked. Madison's eyes scanned Corey's face once again, trying to read through the wall the other girl had suddenly put up. Corey's nose twitched. She tried to figure out how to tell the blonde what happened without actually saying the words, but ultimately gave up.

"Madison..." Corey paused, swallowing hard. She knew that, the moment the words left her lips, her days would be numbered. "I'm the next Supreme."


	25. twenty five

THE HUMIDITY IN THE GREENHOUSE made the air thick. Corey's black silk button down top clung to her skin as she spun the pestle between her fingers. She had been working for hours on end to mix something that she was sure Madison would be able to ingest. For the last week it had been failed attempt after failed attempt on any functional restorative.

Something in her calculations had been off. Each concoction managed to do less and less over time. Madison remained the same, growing more impatient as the trials persisted. Still, Corey worked from sun up to sun down. Madison's voice echoed in her mind as she mashed potential ingredients together.

_"Just find me something that makes me not look like Marilyn Manson anymore." _The door to the greenhouse creaked open. It was only faintly audible over the 70s rock music that blared through the greenhouse's radio speakers. Corey chuckled to herself, her head shaking slightly as she continued to focus on the work in front of her.

"Maddie, I know it's unnerving, but you gotta stop sneaking in here." She ground the pestle down with more force, pulverizing the mixture in front of her into a liquid. "I told you I'd bring it to you when it's done." She tilted the bowl, pouring the liquid into a vial for both quick transport and easy consumption. The redhead finally turned towards the door with a smile. She only managed to look half-way over her shoulder before the smell hit her nostrils.

_Cuban cigars. Axe body spray. Cheap bourbon_. Her body tensed as she locked eyes with the man who leaned against the doorway. Felix stood with his arms crossed over his chest. His aviator sunglasses perched atop the brim of his nose as the toothpick he'd been chewing on bobbed up and down at the corner of his lips. Corey could see the dark stubble that crept across his face, the toothpick catching in it every so often.

"So this is where the _little bird_ has been hiding," his voice carried across the room as he watched Corey's smile fall from her face. "It's nice," he nodded. He took a single step into the greenhouse. The sole of his boot let out a pulsating echo as it connected with concrete. "Not the _quaint _and _cozy_ nest I was expecting, but…" He paused. His lips turned downward in a pout as he tilted his head back and forth, judging the witch's chosen surroundings. "I'm sure it'll grow on me."

"How did you find me?" The redhead groaned. She had enjoyed her silence while she had it, though she knew it couldn't have lasted. Her instinct was to squirm uncomfortably from his gaze but she fought against it.

"I paid a visit to your little producer friend." She could hear the chuckle that bubbled up in his throat. She sniffled, quickly crossing her arms over her chest. Of course he had harassed Jack. He was the only person— outside of Stevie, Madison, and the coven— that Corey talked to consistently.

"What do you want, Felix?" She spat. She leaned against the table behind her, frustrated over her manager's sudden appearance. Her tongue ran against her top teeth as she watched the older man continue to move into her space.

"You haven't been answering your phone, kid," he said. His shoulders bobbed upward in a shrug as his arms dropped to his sides. He swayed back and forth with each step. It was an intoxicated swagger, though the man was clearly sober.

"And with reason," Corey rolled her eyes. She didn't have to explain herself to Felix, especially with her situation being as unbelievable as it was. "I'm allowed to turn off my phone every once in a while, you know." She watched as he grew defensive, his nostrils flaring out in anger ever so slightly. She wondered, for a moment, if she should have turned her phone on after bringing Madison back. She shook off the thought as Felix spoke again, his voice angry and commanding.

"Do you have _any idea_ about the mess _we've_ had to clean up while you've been here _playing house?"_ He let his fingertips drag against the butcher block table in the center of the room. He was slightly tempted to knock over the potted plant that sat dangerously close to the edge. Corey rolled her jaw in response. Her mind locked on the final phrase, 'playing house'. It was a reminder that Felix was more like Fiona than she had realized.

"Alexis Hedge and I have had to jump through hoops to hide the information that leaked from a so-called _trusted source_." Corey blinked rapidly. The confusion quickly took over as she tried to understand what was going on. "This time proved to be completely unsuccessful." Felix stood so that the redhead was no longer facing the door or the wall to wall windows. It was an attempt to keep all of her attention on him, as well as an intimidation tactic. It forced her to keep her back towards the door, which in itself made her anxious. She couldn't help but feel like there was someone behind her, though she wouldn't dare turn around.

"No one could get a hold of you or that _fucking_ Montgomery girl. Your silence has been the only answer anyone has needed." The redhead's tongue ran across her lower lip. Her heartrate quickened as her eyes scanned the floor near her feet. _What could have been so damning that her manager came looking for her? And would Madison's manager be following in suit?_

"I don't know what the fuck you're talking about," she looked up from the floor. Her head tilted at the older man as he stopped a few feet in front of her. The stench that wafted from him was potent. Corey watched as the anger flashed from deep within his blue eyes.

"You have been so _sloppy_ in covering your tracks. So distracted by a _bitch_ in heels that you've forgotten how to stay hidden and who to keep close." Corey let out a dry laugh. Her gaze shifted towards the ceiling. "I told you the moment you two met that this was a disaster waiting to happen. It's almost as if you _want_ to destroy both of your careers."

It was the same conversation they always had about Madison. The same 'get rid of her or we're finished here' threats that always led to nothing in the end. Corey looked back at Felix with a bored expression. She was tired of playing his games, but she was afraid that she wouldn't get picked up by another management team if he dropped her.

"Samuel Anderson sold photos of you and that _slut_ to any tabloid that would take them." Her mouth hung open at the derogatory remark that left his lips. Sam didn't have any solid evidence outside of _'friendly'_ hand holding or a brief hug. At least, that's what Corey had always thought. "_Everyone_ knows, Corinna."

"Don't call me that," her jaw clenched. She hated hearing her full first name come from anyone's mouth that wasn't someone close to her. She was tired of the way Felix talked about Madison. Tired of the slurs he threw around when he thought no one was listening. Most of all, she was tired of the way he treated their relationship. Immediately, her nostrils flared.

"No one knows shit. Everything has been speculation for years. There's no leg for the rumors to stand on. It's mindless gossip; always has been, always will be." She didn't move. Instead, she watched as Felix slowly pulled the rolled up tabloid magazine from his back pocket. Her eyes followed the waxy pages as he took a step closer. He jabbed the magazine in her direction, forcing it to crumple against her slightly. Corey unfolded her arms as she took the magazine in her hands, her brow furrowed in confusion. As she unrolled it, a collage of images stared back at her.

_Madison sitting in her lap, drunk, with a hand up Corey's shirt._

_The redhead pressing Madison against a wall in her greenroom on tour._

_Corey and Madison kissing in the kitchen of their own apartment._

_Madison sitting in Corey's lap in the studio, her arms draped around the redhead's neck._

_Madison, drunk and kissing Corey at a concert when she thought no one could see them in the dark._

_A statement from Sam, reiterating what he had told the world when he was kicked from the band. "They're inseparable. I don't know why they won't just admit that they're together and drop their lousy beards. It'd save everyone the trouble of having to cover for them so often. I swear, more of what we do on tour is covering for Corey and Madison instead of actually performing."_

_Corey and Madison following Stevie backstage, hand in hand._

_The girls walking together, giggly, as they weaved in and out of abandoned theme park rides._

_Corey practically carrying Madison back into the academy the night that she was assaulted._

_The witches with their arms snaked around one another at the LaLaurie mansion._

_Corey watching Madison with pure adoration as she signed autographs._

_The girls holding each other at the roller rink, their lips almost touching._

_A statement from the star struck employee at the roller rink's concession stand. "They seemed very close, definitely more than friends from what I could tell."_

_A blurry photo of the girl's shadows through Corey's bedroom window, which overlooked the front yard of the academy and faced the street._

Corey wanted to vomit. She shook violently at the evidence in her grasp. It mocked her. They had been so careful and yet, somehow— even in the privacy of their own home, with people they thought they could trust— they were always one moment away from the world knowing their biggest secret. She didn't have a care in the world if everyone knew that she was gay. She did, however, care about Madison and how it would affect her.

The blonde always cared so much about what people thought. Her sober mind was focused on how their relationship would be perceived from the outside: how people would react; what would be said about her; what her homophobic parents would say to the public; how her fans would feel if they found out they'd been lied to; what names she would be called; whether or not the industry would blacklist her; how the community would react if they had ever found out. She consistently struggled with her own identity, both her bisexuality and her lineage. She never truly felt like she could let the world in either way.

"You had _one_ job." Corey's eyes remained on the magazine in her hands as she spoke through her teeth. "One _single_ fucking job. To make sure Sam couldn't ever put her in danger." She clenched her fists as her jaw rolled. The waxy paper crinkled loudly as the binding began to tear under her grasp. Her anxiousness had become anger; a burning ball of hate in the pits of her stomach for the man that had unintentionally put a target on the back of the girl that she loved.

In the time that Madison had been dead, the entire world learned about the relationship that they'd been hiding for years. The metaphorical curtain that they had put up to protect the actress was wrapped around their feet, their potential downfall imminent.

"We're done here," she slammed the crumpled, tattered magazine against Felix's chest. "My legal team will be in contact with you to end my contract." She scrunched her nose, a quick 'get fucked' smirk flashing across her lips as she took a single step back. Felix tried to open his mouth to respond, but couldn't manage to get the words out. He was frozen, though he couldn't tell if it was from shock or something else.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to call my producer and rerecord my album. There's no point in using the wrong pronouns if the whole world _knows_ it's a red herring." She let her arms extend outward, shrugging slightly. As she continued to walk backwards towards the door, she grabbed the glass vial that the restorative mixture rested in. She wouldn't turn her back on the man until she was a safe distance away.

Corey made her way back into the academy through a side door. It was close to the greenhouse but otherwise hidden out of sight from the yard. She ran a shaky hand through her hair as she continued upstairs. She had no idea what she was going to tell Madison. She hoped, for the blonde's sake, that the public reaction to their relationship was a positive one. It would make everything much easier on Corey's end if the couple didn't have to worry about needing to dole out damage control within their separate online communities.

_"You've been wondering if it was worth the trouble. And I've been wondering that same thing." _The blonde's voice echoed through the hallway as Corey peered into her bedroom. She furrowed her brow, her head tilted slightly as she watched Ophelia's ears perk up from the cat's spot in the center of the bed. Corey followed the sound of the blonde's voice to Madison and Zoe's room. She was confused, both wondering who the girl had been speaking to and why she'd left the bedroom to begin with.

Corey froze in the threshold as she nudged the pearl colored door open. Her breath caught in her throat. Her grip on the vial slipped and the sound of shattering glass echoed through the otherwise quiet hall. Before her, Madison and Kyle sat with lips connected. The blonde was caught off guard, her hands up in surrender. Kyle's hands held her dull grey toned cheeks as he kept her lips pressed against his own. Corey's jaw trembled as her mouth opened and closed, unable to protest. Her feet remained glued to the floor, keeping her from willing herself away.

The girl she consistently fought so hard for was sitting against her own twin sized mattress, her lips locked with someone who wasn't her girlfriend. Her girlfriend that had written who knows how many albums for her; that had just fired her manager for her; that had brought her back from the dead. As Madison finally managed to push away from Kyle's death-grip against her cheeks, Corey's feet broke free. She took off down the hall as quickly as she could.


	26. twenty six

OVER A WEEK HAD PASSED, AND MADISON REMAINED dull-complexioned and scarred. She kept herself hidden from the rest of the coven. It was a change in pace but much needed for her personal recovery process. She wasn't used to not leaving the academy, let alone her own room. However, it was where she had felt safe for the time being; holed up in Corey's bedroom with Ophelia practically superglued to her side.

She enjoyed the silence, deciding not to turn her phone back on. Before she died, she always made sure that the device was in her hand, or her pocket, or her purse. It was an extension of herself. She maintained a consistent need to scroll through an illuminated screen and interact with people she may never meet face to face.

Madison had read more books in the last week than she'd felt she had ever read in her entire 21 years of life. She had a newfound appreciation for Corey's taste in literature. Before death, she hadn't understood the redhead's need to always keep a book on her. Now she hungered for the stories that filled the musician's bookshelves. Though they didn't help make her feel any less empty inside, they kept her occupied while Corey was hidden away in the greenhouse.

What was worse than the absence of emotion within her was the small, subtle, quiet reactions her body had to Corey's presence. She only ever felt anything when the redhead was around and, even then, it was a simple ripple through her skin; or a tingling in her chest; or a vibration in her bones; or a warmth that pulsed from her core.

Before death, Madison would have done anything she could to not feel, to avoid her emotions. What was once a numbness to the world, an indifference to suffering, was now a complete absence of feeling. She would give anything to feel hurt again; to feel pain; to feel the gravitational pull she had once felt just by locking eyes with Corey.

Nothing that the musician had brought up from the greenhouse managed to have any effect. Madison had forced herself to try every eye of newt and wing of fly but she still couldn't feel anything. No matter what she did, she couldn't fill the hole inside of her. She was starting to lose herself, unable to take the eternal silence that came from within her any longer.

The blonde knew that the other witch would be upset, but she couldn't spend another day locked in their bedroom. She slipped into one of Corey's smaller black dresses that hung in the walk in closet. The long sleeves covered the scar that ran deep into her shoulder. She rubbed it sympathetically as she looked through the drawer of chokers in the redhead's jewelry box. She found a thick black ribbon to cover the scar across her throat and tied it around her neck.

On her way out, after finding her own black stilettos, she made sure that Ophelia stayed put, closing the bedroom door behind her. It wasn't enough that the door clicked in place, but it kept the others from being able to peer inside.

Madison made her way through the academy, a light hum leaving her lips as she moved. She was confused to see an extra car out front. It was a rental, parked directly in front of the gate that led to the property. She furrowed her brow for a moment before shrugging and continuing on her way. She assumed it was Fiona, or a gentleman caller that the Supreme had snuck in overnight.

She moved quietly, her high heels clicking against broken cobblestone as she neared the greenhouse. When she peered in, she could see that the redhead wasn't looking in her direction. It didn't take long for the overpowering scent of cigar to make its way to her.

Madison swallowed back the foul words she had for the man who held her girlfriend's attention. She didn't want to make herself known. Instead, she waited just outside, within earshot of the conversation they shared.

"_You have been so sloppy in covering your tracks. So distracted by a bitch in heels that you've forgotten how to stay hidden and who to keep close."_ Her face flinched at Felix's words. He was loud, and angry, yet overly confident in himself.

_"I told you the moment you two met that this was a disaster waiting to happen. It's almost as if you want to destroy both of your careers."_ She waited for Corey to speak up, to say anything in her defense, but the redhead remained silent. Madison let her tongue press against her bottom lip as she tried to understand what could have been going on.

_"Samuel Anderson sold photos of you and that slut to any tabloid that would take them."_ It was then that the blonde decided that she'd had enough. She hurried away, the tears welling in her eyes. The man would never say the words to her face, the demeaning 'bitch' and 'slut' and 'skank' that she knew he used specifically about her when he thought she wasn't listening.

Madison didn't need to be around for the beginning of their conversation to know that Felix had been talking about her. She also didn't need to stick around for the end of it if Corey wouldn't so much as stand up for her. How could the woman who had brought her back from her cold empty death be so silent? How often did Felix call her these things and Corey just let it happen, like water rolling off her back?

She only had one person that she could talk to. One person that she could seek out that _maybe_ had any idea how she felt. She wiped her cheeks with the palms of her hand but they came back dry. _Right, the emptiness,_ she thought.

She had found herself standing in the doorway of the bedroom she had been assigned to share with Zoe. She wasn't sure how she had managed to travel up the stairs and through the large home so quickly. She stood with her hands shaking as she moved through the room, looking for the brunette.

She wasn't sure where the girl was, but it definitely wasn't their bedroom. She wanted to unravel. To spew what was on her mind like word vomit and go back to her day as if nothing had happened. The guttural yell as she walked past the gap between the twin-sized mattresses caught her off guard. She jumped, her hand clenching her dress against her chest in nothing more than an instinctual impulse.

"Kyle," she sighed. She pursed her lips together, trying to find the words to say to the boy who couldn't articulate himself. She sat down on the edge of her mattress, her brow furrowed in thought.

"You were dead," she looked down at her hands as his eyes scanned her face. "So was I." Kyle looked down at the floor as Madison furrowed her brows. "I didn't see a light, did you?" She wanted a yes or a no. A grunt of approval or an angry scream. Anything that could be a response to the questions she so desperately needed answers for.

"Mine was cold, and dark," she felt her bottom lip quiver as he looked back up at her. His mouth hung open slightly. "And then nothing." This time, she felt the tears roll down her cheeks as she let out a soft whimper. Kyle pulled himself up into the bed next to Madison, his eyes moving frantically as he tried to understand.

"But we both came back," Madison shrugged. She pulled her sad lips back into a forced smile. They both came back, Kyle a soldier of death and Madison an empty shell of the socialite she once was. "To this." Her voice was deeper, angrier, as she thought about Felix and his words. About Corey and her lack of a rebuttal to them.

"Somehow, it feels more empty here." The blonde's lip trembled uncontrollably as she held in the sob that wanted to push itself through her chest and out of her throat. Kyle nodded, silently, as he looked down at the floor.

"You know exactly how I feel," she reached out a hand, resting it against the boy's knee. She sniffled, watching his lip quiver as he tried to form the words he wanted so badly to say. Madison could tell that they were on the tip of his tongue, locked behind his teeth and lips.

"You've been wondering if it was worth the trouble." This time the sob snuck itself into her words. She squeezed his knee reassuringly as she watched a single tear roll down Kyle's cheek. "And I've been wondering that same thing," she nodded. Her tongue darted out to wet her lips as her eyes locked against the hem of the dress that she was wearing. The lace barely covered her knees, a modest attempt at hiding the bruises and discoloration that her death had left behind.

Kyle's nose twitched as he pulled himself closer to Madison, shuffling against the comforter on the mattress she never slept on. She placed a single hand on his chest as he leaned in close. She assumed that he would pull her in for a hug. It was something Corey always did when she was moments away from breaking, something she always found comfort in.

Instead, his hands latched against her cheeks as he yanked her towards him. His lips crashed against her own, chapped and rough compared to Corey's soft, pouty, peach ones. His tongue forced its way between her lips, tasting like cheap beer and Jägermeister. She wondered if he knew that she tasted like strawberry bubblegum and menthol cigarettes.

For a moment, she wished he'd tasted like black coffee and toasted tobacco instead. That he'd smelled like cinnamon and charred cedar instead of morgue and gasoline. That his hands were soft like clouds pressed against her cheeks instead of two forced bricks squishing her face against his own. Her hands drifted away from him, hovering in the air as she tried to find a way to break from Kyle's grip without unintentionally injuring herself.

She was reminded of the amalgamation of faces that flashed over her at the frat party. It was the night she had finally lost all faith. The night that she wanted nothing more than to let herself drown in alcohol and whatever prescription drugs she could find. She would have done anything to numb the pain that lingered from that night. To keep herself from ever being able to remember what had been done to her. To keep herself from remembering that she had been naïve enough to trust a complete stranger in a foreign environment on a night that she had just wished to be spiteful.

The jarring echo of shattering glass rang out from the doorway. _No, no, no, no, no_. Her internal monologue repeated itself in a panic. Her hands fluttered, but the rest of her body was unable to move. She was trapped under the grasp of the zombie frat boy, forced to remember what she had to endure the night that she killed him.

Madison tried to wiggle away from his grasp. She wondered if biting down against his unwanted tongue, which forcefully canvased her mouth, would get him to let her go. She feared his strength; his lack of a grasp on reality; his complete unawareness when it came to his surroundings.

She pounded the palm of her hand against his chest, batting him away. He remained, tongue pressed against her cheek, as she protested. Finally, she managed push him away. She shot up, completely disgusted over the floppy haired boy that looked up at her with sad eyes. Madison's head turned towards the door. She watched the redhead take off in a blur and coughed out another sob.

"What the _fuck_ is wrong with you, Kyle?" She spat. Her nose twitched involuntarily as she stomped away. She heard Corey's bedroom door slam as Kyle screamed angrily. She shook her head, mad at herself for thinking that the boy she had pieced back together would have any concept of complex human emotions. Any concept of trauma and what came with it. Any concept of the bond between two people that seemed to be stronger without the emotional tether that lingered in her humanity. The tears streamed down her cheeks faster as she felt the invisible string that tugged her towards the closed bedroom door.

Madison used her telekinesis to throw the door open. The sound rippled out as it slammed against the wall behind it. She scanned the room, her eyes searching for Corey as she moved. Her heels echoed, a quick _click, click, click,_ as she stomped. She found the redhead curled in their bed, wrapped around Ophelia as she stared at her hands.


	27. twenty seven

IT WAS LIKE A BOMB HAD GONE OFF. The poignant ringing caused Corey's head to spin. She couldn't hear anything outside of the loud, incessant whirring of her ears. She hadn't even realized that Madison had followed her into the bedroom until the blonde was directly in front of her. The door had swung shut as the girl's silent steps moved towards her. Soft, cold, pale hands found themselves anchored to both sides of her face.

Madison's mouth moved, but it was as if the world that surrounded Corey was mute. The redhead furrowed her brow as her eyes scanned the girl's face. She took in the blonde's tearstained cheeks, her almost stone colored skin, the discoloration of her once pink lips as they moved frantically. Corey pulled away from the blonde, her furrowed brow contorting into a scowl as she swallowed hard. She pushed off the bed, distancing herself from the actress.

"I don't want to hear your flimsy excuses, Madison." Corey's voice was harsh. Her features shifted into confusion once more as she realized she hadn't seen anything when Madison had touched her. She turned her head, blinking rapidly as she tried to understand the sudden pause in her power. She ran a hand down her face as her eyes scanned the room. She wanted to focus on something, anything, other than the broken pieces of the blonde in front of her.

"You're upset," the quiet whimper escaped Madison's lips. She took in a shaky breath. She wanted to build her walls back up. All it took to shoot her back down, to humble her, was Corey's tone. She hadn't seen the other girl that angry since Kyle was put back together like a three dimensional puzzle.

"I'm not." The redhead let her tongue press against the roof of her mouth. Her breath and tone leveled as she caught another glimpse of the crumpling doll in front of her.

"I know that face. That's your _I'm-upset-with-you_ face." Madison took a shaky step forward, a single hand outstretched towards the musician. Her head tilted to the side slightly as she locked eyes with the redhead. "And your eyebrows... they get really expressive when you're mad."

"I'm not _fucking_ upset, Madison." Corey had snapped. The hairs on the back of her neck stood tall. The energy that surrounded her felt like a gust of wind had struck her in her outburst. Her demeanor screamed the exact opposite of her words as she clenched her jaw.

"Corey, just take my hand. Hold my hand for two seconds and you'll see that I didn't _do_ anything. It was a misunderstanding." There it was, the pain that Madison had so desperately wanted to feel. The pain that she had practically begged to be able to feel again.

"It won't work," Corey said simply. She swallowed hard, sniffling as she ran the back of her hand across her upper lip. "I should've seen whatever had happened when you touched my face, or when I touched your wrists to take your hands off me. But I didn't. So it isn't going to work."

"What do you mean it won't work," Madison furrowed her brow. Her tone quickly filled with anger. "You're the _fucking Supreme_," she scoffed. She shook her head as she folded her arms over her chest. Immediately, her body language shifted. She became defensive, curling herself back into her shell.

"Because it won't, Madison. I don't fucking know." Corey groaned. A hand ran through her loose curls as her gaze locked onto the knotted wood floor below her feet. She rolled her jaw, trying her hardest to hold in her emotions. "Why the fuck does it matter to you?" Corey spat. Her nose twitched involuntarily as her eyes narrowed at the floor below her. The room was on fire. Every cell in her body danced to the sound of their racing heartbeats. "It's not like you even care."

Madison scoffed at the words that left Corey's lips. Everything that she had been searching for was right in front of her. Even with Kyle, she couldn't feel a single thing. She was so angry with herself; hurt that she had let herself become so vulnerable with the floppy haired boy. If she had just left her guard up, kept herself distanced, he never would have kissed her.

The actress only wanted to unleash her feelings on someone else so that she didn't need to bottle them up any longer. She wanted to act upon her own selfishness, as she always did, and it backfired. She knew that Corey would have seen how everything had played out eventually, whether she liked it or not.

She had hoped, silently, that the redhead wouldn't see what had happened in fragments. That the other girl would see everything as it was and not in bits and pieces which she then had to put back together herself. What she didn't expect, however, was for what happened with Kyle to even happen at all. Nor had she expected the redhead to walk in as she was frozen, battling the shock and disgust that fought for dominance within her.

"Why does it matter?" Corey repeated her previous question. Her brows furrowed as she blinked back the hot, angry tears that began to well up. Her jaw rolled as she crossed her arms over her chest. Her eyes finally latched onto the girl that stood across from her. Without thinking, the words flew from Madison's lips.

"Because I fucking love you, Corinna." Her breathing caught in her chest as she realized what she'd said. She swallowed hard, the corners of her lips turning downward. Corey watched as Madison's face fell. All the attitude melted off her as she struggled to process the words she had heard.

"You're the only thing that makes me feel alive and, when you touch me, I feel a little less broken inside." Madison's words were softer than they had been initially. Her voice cracked as she closed her eyes, the thump of her wrists against her hips audible as her arms fell against her sides. "I love you."

Corey's mouth immediately became dry. The words that she had so desperately wanted to tell the blonde, that she had told Zoe before she could ever tell Madison, had come from the blonde's lips first. Her mouth hung open slightly, confusion and shock washing over her.

"Corey, please say something," Madison's bottom lip quivered. What had felt like only a beat of silence for the redhead was an excruciatingly long pause for the blonde. Corey took a shaky step forward, her hands finding themselves in the notches under Madison's jaw. She held the blonde's face in her hands, her bottom lip trembling as she tried to speak. Corey squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, an attempt to push back the hot tears that threatened to spill across her cheeks.

"I love you, too." Her eyes scanned the blonde's face as she spoke. She swore she could see a flicker of light returning to the blonde's dull, rust colored eyes. Corey could feel Madison's breath against her face. It was immediately followed by the full force of hungry lips attached to her own. The blonde's hands latched against the her hips as the redhead pulled her flush against herself. She didn't know why, but her body reacted as if her heart hadn't shattered inside of her chest only moments before. Everything finally washed over Corey in waves.

_Madison watching Felix and Corey from the side door._

_Felix's remarks directed at the blonde he caught a small glimpse of in the doorway._

_The way that Felix had smirked at Madison as she turned away and went back into the academy._

_The blonde's search for Zoe._

_The way she opened herself up to Kyle in an attempt to connect with him._

_Kyle immediately misunderstanding and trying to communicate in the only way he knew how._

Corey shook off the visuals as they crept into her mind. Instead, she focused on the way Madison's delicate fingers gently tugged at the buttons of her silk shirt as she backed the blonde up against the wall; the faint scent of strawberry bubblegum that wafted from the girl's lips; the flowery perfume that clung to the dress that didn't belong to her.

Corey's hands moved downward from their spot against Madison's jaw. They made a detour at the girl's collarbone; a rest stop solely used to trace the divot between flesh and bone with the pad of her thumb. Her hands slid across marble skin, causing a ripple of heat to follow the trail left behind by her fingertips. Corey's palms quickly ran down Madison's sides before gripping the girl's hips. She was gentle, forever cautious knowing how fragile the blonde was, but determined in pace and stride.

Madison let out a quiet gasp as her shoulder blades bounced against the cold wooden door. Her hands moved feverishly as she continued to pop open the redhead's button-down top. Each inch of bare skin was met with hungry lips as Madison slid the silk shirt from Corey's shoulders.

In one fluid movement, Madison was lifted up from the floor. Her legs wrapped around the redhead's waist, a pair of serpents constricting against the other girl tightly. Their kisses deepened as the blonde draped her arms over Corey's shoulders. Black coffee and toasted tobacco fought against artificial strawberries and mint before they finally melded into one. They matched each other's rhythm, no longer fighting for control as they fell back into their usual habits.

Corey used her hips to secure the blonde against the door as she let her hands fall against her sides. She tugged her sleeves from their bunched up positions against her wrists before she tossed the crumpled garment behind her. Immediately, it was lost to the silence of the room.

Madison let out a giggle, her lips still latched against Corey's as the redhead's protective hands returned to her thighs. The musician slid her palms up until the hem of Madison's dress bunched up against the remaining excess material that sat against her hips. She could feel the blonde's smile in every kiss, the urgency in each movement, the hitch in her breath as each newly exposed patch of bare skin met the brisk November air that surrounded them.

The blonde's hands trailed up the back of Corey's neck. She twisted the solid curls of copper around fingers, humming with each loop. As her manicured nails traveled through Corey's hair, she gently bit down against the girl's bottom lip. As the redhead let out a light gasp, Madison tugged at a handful of the girl's hair.

Within a beat, her wrist was pinned against the door. A light thud echoed out as the boney knob of her wrist bounced against wood. Her breath hitched slightly, though it was much louder than either of them expected in the surrounding silence. It was less of a reaction than Madison had been hoping for. Even though her wrist was restrained, it was only loosely held up by the redhead. Unfortunately, for the actress, Corey's fear of hurting her only doubled after her resurrection.

"I'm not made of glass, Cor," Madison whimpered as Corey's lips trailed across her jawline. The blonde craned her neck to give the other girl better access, which the musician gladly scoured. The redhead hummed in response, a gentle acknowledgement of the other girl's words as she left a fluttering trail of open-mouth kisses behind. Madison's fingers flexed outwards as Corey worked her pressure point. She bit down on her own lip as her tongue dipped outward to keep herself from letting out a guttural moan.

The blonde's hips bucked forward slightly. Corey pushed herself against the other girl. Her light grip around the actress' wrist shifted as their fingers interlocked. She held Madison's hand above their heads, an easy excuse for extra leverage. The whimper that left the blonde's lips was louder than it had been previously. Madison could feel the knot that continued to tighten in her center. Again, she ground her hips against the other girl, silently begging for more; more friction, more force, more Corey.

Corey could feel each gasping breath against her ear, each staggered inhale as she continued to work her way across Madison's neck. Once again, she pressed herself against the blonde who hungered to come undone. This time, however, she made sure the other girl couldn't squirm between her body and the door behind her.

She let go of Madison's hand to let her fingers find the zipper imbedded in the side of the girl's dress. She took careful hold of the zipper between her fingers as she tugged it downward, peppering butterfly kisses across the fabric-turned-choker that covered the scar across Madison's neck. She felt the blonde's hands cup her face.

Madison gently tugged the girl towards herself, closing the gap between their lips. The kiss would have been one of teeth clattering urgency if the pair hadn't memorized every movement, every breath, every sensitive spot of skin. It was delicate, yet full of hunger. An almost touch-starved longing, as if they would never have this moment to themselves again.

"Corey," she spoke between each break, each staggering breath, each ravenous kiss, "Please." The knot in her core continued to tighten, and Madison realized that— even though she couldn't feel anything after her return to the mortal coil— the spark between them was still there, ever present. Dare she say it was even stronger without the other feelings and emotions that had smothered it before.

One of her hands fell from the redhead's face to grasp at her shoulder. Her fingers let out a shaky, silent, pleading squeeze. Corey's arms wrapped around the actress as she pushed off the door, holding the much smaller girl tightly as she carried her across the room.

Corey gently placed Madison against the edge of the mattress and took a single step backwards. She watched as Madison shuttered slightly, both from the loss of contact and the sudden chill of the autumn air. The blonde tugged the black lace dress over her head, revealing her pearl colored skin in slow, methodical increments.

She tossed the dress to the side, letting it crumple against the floor. The ray of light that shone through the bedroom window formed a halo around the blonde. It highlighted every imperfection, every blemish, every granite-like vein that sprawled across her body. Green eyes focused on the deep scar across her shoulder and Corey's look of adoration flashed to sorrow for a fraction of a second. She hoped that Madison hadn't caught it, but the twitch of the blonde's nose told her all that she needed to know.

"Stop fucking looking at me like that," Madison's bottom lip jutted out in a pout. She hated it, the redhead treating her as if she was fragile; like she had a _handle with care_ sticker across her forehead. "Stop looking at me with pity in your eyes." Quickly, her bottom lip found its way between her teeth. She was suddenly self-conscious, aware of every imperfection she had thought made her unlovable to begin with. She turned to look anywhere but at the redhead in front of her, her arms folding over her stomach as she shied away.

Corey nodded, swallowing hard as she took a step forward. Her hand reached out to carefully grab the blonde's chin. Still, she moved as though she was afraid to break the porcelain girl. She tilted Madison's head towards her, guiding the girl's attention back to herself as she spoke.

"You are so _dangerously_ beautiful, Madison Montgomery," there was a huskiness to her voice that Madison hadn't heard in a while. It caused her heart to flutter erratically. She hoped, silently prayed, that the whole _being dead thing _had cured her heart murmur. She tilted her head back, shifting to close the distance between them once again.

Corey could feel the heat that radiated from the blush in Madison's cheeks; a warm wave of bashfulness shining like a beacon. The redhead's hands slowly traveled across Madison's bare skin. Each touch with her fingertips was calculated and meticulous. Madison laid back against the sheets. Her eyes followed the redhead as she left a trail of sloppy kisses across each newly bared inch of skin.

The actress' back arched as Corey's lips skimmed an overly sensitive spot against the dip of her hip. She wanted to voice her protests, to beg the redhead to focus her attention elsewhere, but the other girl moved on before she could. It didn't take long before her head pressed back against the comforter. She gripped the sheets underneath her, the cotton fabric balled up under her fists. Her back arched towards Corey once more, yearning for more contact as the cold sweat clung to her skin. She let out a breathy moan. It was the only sound in the room, a solo-symphony that bounced off the white walls of the academy around them.


	28. twenty eight

THE COMBINED POUNDING OF THEIR HEARTS was the only sound that filled the room as they laid together, tangled in the sheets. Madison hummed in content as the pads of their fingers pressed against one another. Light giggles erupted from deep within them, both girls struggling to swallow them down. Ophelia rested between their masses, curled up into a sleepy purring ball.

Corey slowly returned her hand to her side, rolling over until her bare chest pressed against the sheets beneath her. The cat stirred silently, a light coo the only protest to the sudden movement underneath her sleeping form. The redhead placed a hand on Madison's shoulder, her thumb smoothing circles into the blonde's cool skin as she let her cheek rest against her pillow.

The light from the window that reflected against Madison's eyes let out a faint gold glow as she pulled the corner of her lips up into a smirk. Her eyelids were heavy, fighting the exhaustion that followed the sheer overexertion that her body had not entirely been prepared for. Her tired eyes locked on the deep red scratches that scattered across Corey's back, each varying in length and color.

"Shit," she gasped, her face falling for a moment. She sat up in a hurry. The thin sheet that once modestly covered her sat crumpled against her hips as she leaned forward. "Oh, baby, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." Her voice was soft, a tone and pitch the blonde reserved solely for her counterpart. Her lithe hands immediately feathered the freckled, scratched skin. Corey let out a chuckle at the blonde's sudden concern.

"Maddie, it's fine," she let her arm wrap around the blonde's waist and tugged her back down against her side. She nuzzled against Madison, her voice no more than a low grumble. "I can't even feel it." She had, in fact, felt the sharp pain across her shoulders the moment that Madison had dragged her nails across skin, but everything after that had remained numb. It wasn't until the blonde began fanning her hands around the scratches across her back that she had noticed the stinging sensation in any capacity.

The mattress shifted as the blonde plopped back down against her pillow with a pout. She was frustrated, her nose twitching as she swallowed back her protests. Goosebumps prickled across her skin at the warmth of Corey's touch. It sent a slight shutter down her spine as a dull rosy blush crept across her otherwise desaturated cheeks. She let her eyes begin to flutter closed, finally allowing sleep to take over in the calm comforting pause.

Corey fought with herself, her inner monologue pushing between letting Madison rest and warning her about what information Felix had brought with him. The nagging voice in her had finally won. She needed to tell the truth before the blonde fell asleep; before she figured out about the _'trusted source'_ on her own.

"I fired Felix," she was blunt about it, though it wasn't intentional. Madison's eyes flickered open, a furrowed brow accompanying her confusion. "I couldn't take it anymore. Between the things he called you and what he allowed to happen," her hand trailed upwards to loosely grab a lock of Madison's hair. She twirled it between her fingers as her tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip.

"What do you mean?" Madison rested her cold hand against Corey's face, her thumb nesting in the dip of the other girl's chin. The redhead closed her eyes, taking in a sharp, shaky breath. She swallowed hard as she looked at the blonde once more, her green eyes locking with the gold halos directly in front of her.

"You should know, before you turn your phone on," her shoulders shook as she inhaled deeply. It was an attempt to calm herself, though she was still more nervous than she could ever imagine. Even on stage, or cycling through tedious auditions, she was never as nervous as she was in this moment. Her heart raced, though Madison remained calm.

"Sam had far more evidence than he had originally let on…" her eyes scanned the blonde's face frantically as she spoke. She couldn't keep herself calm, and the way that Madison maintained her composure chilled her at her core. "He sold us out. Everyone knows."

Madison's eyes slowly scanned Corey's face, the confusion falling from her features. She should have been angry, or frantic. She should have shot up from her spot on the bed, collected her things, and left. Corey had played the situation out in her head again and again. Each scenario ended in Madison leaving, or emotionally crumbling, or telling her off and immediately finding her way back to Los Angeles without her. Yet now, having her worst fear become reality, she was eerily calm.

"Corinna, I don't care." She spoke simply, her tone unwavering. "I've had the time to mull it over, and I've realized that nothing is more important to me than you are." Madison's hand moved up to cup the redhead's cheek, her thumb rubbing small, reassuring circles into the girl's peachy skin.

"I don't care what anyone else thinks about me, or you, or us." Again, she spoke in the soft pitch and tone she reserved for Corey. It was her own way of proving to the redhead that she was telling the complete truth. "You have my whole heart. I don't think I could ever get it back, even if I wanted to."

The redhead furrowed her brow, blatantly wearing her confusion across her face. It wasn't the reaction that she had expected from the actress. Madison had been so adamant about her fears of other's opinions for so long that Corey couldn't bring herself to trust the blonde on these matters right away. She wondered, silently, if the other girl was holding the truth deep within. If she had been putting on a façade with the sole intention of not alarming the other girl. If she had only been saying what she knew Corey wanted to hear so that she could confide in herself or others about the situation and how it tolled on her at a later date.

Madison could feel that the other girl hadn't truly believed her words. She swallowed hard as she propped herself up with her elbow, careful not to injure herself as her scarred arm supported her weight. She let her tongue dart out as she thought hard for a moment. She wanted something more than her own words to enforce what she had already said.

Quickly, she flipped over and removed her cellphone from its charger before turning it back on. She watched the notifications flood her screen; a collection of missed calls, social media mentions, private message requests, text messages, and emails piled on top of one another. She ignored them as she rolled back towards Corey, choosing instead to select notepad and begin typing away.

"Maddie, what are you—" her voice was cut off by a single finger briefly pressed against her lips as Madison continued typing with one hand. Nails touching glass let out a frantic _clack-clack-clack_. Madison returned her freehand to her phone and Corey let her arm drape across the blonde's waist, loosely holding her in place as if she could fly away from her at any moment. She unintentionally held her breath as she watched the blonde produce a lengthy confession on the virtual yellow paper.

After a while, she deleted the note completely and instead selected the vintage camera icon of her Instagram application. She scrolled through her images and selected one of herself with her arms wrapped around Corey's waist— their adoring gazes mirrored one another as they seemed to ignore the existence of the rest of the world around them. Instead of her original intention, a heartfelt extensive confession of her relationship with the musician, she added a simple caption to the photo; Corey's own unreleased lyrics, now obvious to the world as being about Madison.

_Maybe you ran with the wolves and refused to settle down._

_Maybe I've stormed out of every single room in this town._

_Threw out our cloaks and our daggers because it's morning now; it's brighter now._

Before Corey could protest, Madison selected the small blue _'post' _text in the upper right hand corner. She put her phone away, the flooding of notifications once again immediate as she finally broke the unintentional silence on the situation at hand. She looked back at the redhead, a cocky grin on her lips as she settled back down against her pillow. Corey narrowed her eyes at the blonde for a moment, contemplating what words she would let fall from her lips.

"What?" Madison scoffed, almost defensive as an innocent shrug graced her shoulders. "It's not like it wasn't already public knowledge." She reached out and tucked a stray copper curl behind the other girl's ear. "Besides, I didn't _technically_ confirm or deny anything." Corey let out a soft laugh, her head shaking as she let her hand trail up Madison's side.

"You are a work of art," she giggled. Corey's tongue darted out to wet her lips as she felt the ripple of the blonde's skin under her fingertips. "Should I use your old poetry in mine since you've decided on lyrics for an album that does not yet exist, per se?" She watched Madison's eyes become wide as they scanned her face, trying to decipher any crumb of sarcasm that could be clinging to her lips.

"Corey's eyes are like a jungle; she smiles, it's like the radio. She whispers songs into my window in words that nobody knows." Corey whispered the words, somehow memorized from only a small glance at a poem written three years prior.

"Oh, please, no," Madison gasped. Her heart began to beat faster as she panicked. She truly couldn't tell if the redhead was being serious or if she was playing around.

"Corey finds another way to be the highlight of my day. I'm taking pictures in my mind so I can save them for a rainy day. It's hard to make a conversation when she's taking my breath away." The laughter bubbled up through the whisper, Corey no longer able to hold her serious tone.

"You wouldn't dare!" Madison's hand playfully slapped against the other girl's shoulder, a squeal emitting from her own lips as she nudged the redhead. Corey threw her head back in a laugh, though her joyous outburst was interrupted by the rapping of knuckles against her wooden bedroom door. She furrowed her brow, her attention turning to the bedroom door as the knocking continued.

"Hey, Corey?" The familiar voice chirped from the opposite side of the door as it squealed open. "Delia would like to—" Zoe froze, gasping as her eyes landed on the two girls tangled around each other in the large bed in the center of the room. Madison rolled her eyes, dropping her head back with a groan to look up at the ceiling above her.

"Shit, sorry," immediately, the brunette's gaze locked on the floor under her feet. A light pink heat of embarrassment crept up her neck and across her cheeks. It left her standing in the doorway, red, with her hands shielding her face.

Madison rolled her eyes. She tossed the covers away from herself, covering Ophelia in them with a soft _thud_. Again, the cat cooed. She jumped down from the bed, sauntering into the bathroom without any intention to cover herself.

"I shouldn't have come in, that's my fault," Zoe continued. Corey sat up, holding the thin white bedsheet over her chest with one hand as she moved. She raised a single brow at the other girl, using her freehand to pull her hair out of her face. She tried her best to hold in her sigh as her shoulders slumped slightly.

"You were saying?" Corey asked, her head tilted to the side. She should have known that her afternoon would be interrupted, but part of her hoped that Cordelia was still too busy with Hank's infidelity to drag her back into the everyday work of the coven.

"Cordelia wants to talk to you." Zoe shuffled uncomfortably, shifting her weight as she continued to hide herself from the unintentional indecent exposure before her. Corey turned her head as she heard the shuffle of Madison's feet pattering against the wood floor. The blonde side-eyed Zoe, her head held high as she re-entered the tension filled bedroom.

"Jesus, you'd think she's a virgin with how uncomfortable she is around someone _in the nude_." Madison plopped back down on the bed, a huff leaving her lips as she reached for her pack of cigarettes. "Oh, wait," She pulled a single white stick to her lips, lighting it mentally in the process. "I forgot, _someone _has a _killer vag_." She made sure to not allow any embers to drift to her bare skin, adding burned flesh to her list of less desirable things that could happen.

"Madison!" Zoe scoffed, her foot stomping downward once in protest. Corey rolled her eyes as the blonde who snickered to herself.

"Lay off, Maddie. She didn't do anything other than enter the room." The redhead groaned, her attention returning to the brunette in front of her. "Tell Dee that I'll be down with her in a moment."

"Right," Zoe spoke with a nod, quickly exiting the bedroom and closing the door behind her. At the same time, the blonde protested.

"What?" Madison squeaked. She feigned hurt, one hand resting against her bare chest as the other brought her cigarette to her lips once more. "It's not like it's a lie." She shrugged, a playful smirk on her lips.

* * *

Cordelia stood with poise and purpose, her back turned to the musician. The headmistress poured herself a cup of tea. Corey sat down at the blonde's desk, her lips pursed as she looked around the room with wide eyes. The redhead watched Cordelia from her seat, her knee threatening to bob up and down with every second that the older woman kept her waiting.

"Don't think I haven't taken notice to the changes around here." She pulled the mug of tea towards her face, taking a seat behind her desk. "There is a power that radiates from you, Corinna." Cordelia took a single sip from her mug before placing it down and sitting up straight. Her back pressed firmly against her chair as she folded her hands in front of her. Corey watched cautiously as the woman continued to speak.

"You came here with two powers, _Siren's Song_ and _Pyrokinesis_." Cordelia talked with one hand, waving it slightly as the words left her lips. "Since you have arrived here, you have accumulated a number of powers, each more rare than the last. _Potioncraft_, _Spellcraft_,_ Life-Force Detection,_ _The Sight_."

"What's the point of this conversation, Delia?" Corey asked, her brows turning downward as her eyes scanned the woman's face. She searched for any sign of the Headmistress breaking but she couldn't find a crack in the façade.

"There have been whispers among the academy walls that you had a group assist you in bringing Madison back from the dead." Cordelia deadpanned. Her head tilted slightly as she watched the panic fully set in. Of course the girls, _particularly Nan_, couldn't keep quiet about the redhead's work with Misty and Zoe. Corey's eyes widened, her jaw dropping open as she stammered, trying to find the words to say.

"That tells me all that I need to know." The blonde let her tongue run across her bottom lip, a sarcastic chuckle leaving her lips as she shook her head. "You are one hot-shit-witch." She allowed herself a moment of composure, taking her mug of tea in her hands once more.

After a silent pause, her eyes not leaving the redhead who watched her like a deer caught in a set of headlights, she continued once again. "Which means you've got a bull's-eye on your back, kiddo, and our biggest enemy is locked, loaded, and looking at you."

"Fiona," it was the only word that Corey managed to form fully, still trying to regain any sense of composure. She hadn't realized she had been so careless with her identity and growing powers, though she should have known that she would be found out sooner than she had hoped.

"My mother," Cordelia nodded, slouching in her chair slightly as she took another sip from the mug in her hands. "Fiona is fading, growing weaker, and that only makes her more dangerous. A wounded animal will rip you apart if it's cornered." Again, she took a calm sip from her mug, studying the witch that sat before her.

"If she comes to the conclusion that you are— in fact— her successor, she will slit your throat just like she did to Madison." Corey wanted to comment on Cordelia's sudden realization that she was telling the truth. She wanted to question why the Headmistress hadn't believed her initially. Instead, she swallowed her pride and nudged the conversation further.

"So what do we do?" She asked.

"It's simple," Cordelia shrugged. She leaned forward, her elbows resting against her desk once again. "We're going to kill my mother. Kill her once, kill her good, kill her dead."


	29. twenty nine

THE INTERNAL TIP-TAPPING OF NAILS AGAINST bone echoed quietly as a single thumb flitted between her teeth. Corey paced back and forth, an added anxious bounce to every step. She wasn't fond of the outcome of her meeting with Cordelia. The rest of the girls voices were a stagnant hum compared to her own nagging voice in her head as the group bickered back and forth within the four walls of the Headmistress' office.

"What good will come from killing her?" Corey pulled her hand away from her mouth to speak; the arm she kept pressed against her chest gave way slightly with the small movement. "I get the sentiment, but revenge and vengeance are two very different things, you need to understand that." Cordelia rolled her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that afternoon. She took in a deep breath, her shoulders rising gradually as she collected her thoughts.

"Corinna," she sighed, a single hand wiping across her face in frustration. They had been having the same argument since she pulled the redhead into her office. The sun had begun to set behind her; the pinks and oranges that reflected against the white walls told the blonde how long they had been in the small room together, arguing over semantics and _what-ifs_. "She will carve through every member of this coven until she feels that she has eliminated the next Supreme." Cordelia leaned forward, her elbows adjusting to rest against her desk as they supported her weight.

"And then she'll use our recruiting system to find the next witch, and the witch after that, and the one after that." Her eyes were locked on the redhead who continued to move about the room frantically. She couldn't understand the girl's refusal to give Fiona a taste of her own medicine, especially after the woman had snuffed out the only light that Corey had in New Orleans. "Ending Fiona's reign of terror will save the future of the coven as we know it."

"Am I not just like her if I kill her to protect the rest of us?" Corey scoffed, her hands falling to her sides. The rest of the coven turned to face her; Nan, Queenie, Madison, Zoe. Their eyes locked on her, the majority filled with anger over the redhead's inability to fully handle the situation. "I don't want to play god."

"You already did when you brought _miss thing_ back," Queenie spat. She folded her arms over her chest. The scowl, full of the attitude that radiated from her, embedded itself into her forehead. "The rest of us were fine with Madison being dead." She shrugged, unfazed by the gasp that left the actress' lips. Zoe muttered something inaudible under her breath and Nan's head snapped in her direction, her eyes wide. "Just say that you only care about _yourself_ and move on." Corey closed her eyes, letting her jaw roll and fall open slightly at the girl's words. Cordelia chimed in before the redhead could defend herself.

"Losing Madison was a terrible failure, but it was _my_ failure. I trusted my mother which, looking back, I should have never done." She leaned away from her desk, her shoulders squared as she sat up taller. Her focus shifted from Corey to Queenie, the silent threat in her eyes all that she needed in order to keep the young witch quiet.

"Hindsight is twenty-twenty," Zoe chirped. The sarcasm oozed from her small frame almost as effortlessly as if the words had come from Madison herself. It was shocking, how close the three witches had become in the time that the blonde had been back.

The actress side-eyed the brunette, though it was more in fondness than distaste, as she gave the girl a small smirk of approval. She was enjoying how quickly Zoe was speaking without thinking instead of keeping her words to herself. It made for entertaining banter between the trio and an occasional euphoric thrill for the brunette; she wasn't one to speak her mind and had generally kept to herself before her introduction to the coven.

"Madison is back _thanks to Corinna_. If it hadn't been for her persistence, we'd still be missing a member of our _family_, whether you girls would like to admit it or not." Cordelia's attention returned to Corey, having chosen to ignore the comment from the other witch in order to further the topic of the previous conversation. "Which brings us back to our battle plan, starting with killing Fiona. We can't afford to wait."

A light knock echoed through the hallway; it grabbed the redhead's attention for a moment, pulling her from the tunnel-vision that the nagging voice in the back of her head had created. She thought about stepping away and finding the source of the noise but decided against it. She needed to be with the girls, to figure out how to end Fiona's tyranny once and for all. Spalding would take care of whoever was at the door; he always did.

"I should be the one. I want to slit her throat." Madison's voice was filled with an unusual venom. There was a glossy, dark anger in her eyes that the rest of the coven hadn't seen in the other girl before. Corey knew the look in Madison's eyes very well, however. She'd seen it time and time again when the actress felt like she had been wronged, or that there was something that she should have been able to handle on her own that she couldn't, or when information spilled that they _just couldn't cover up_.

The blonde had channeled all of her emotions over the news that had leaked across social-media into her distaste for the reigning Supreme. She wanted Fiona dead, and she wanted to be the one to make sure it was done the right way. She would love nothing more than to eliminate the embodiment of her hatred and fears, though she would never voice the true reason for wanting to do so. Instead, she would let the others assume she only wanted revenge for her own death and not the death of the persona she once thought she had so much control over.

"No, Maddie." The redhead's shoulders fell as she watched the anger bubble up in the small blonde. It was almost second nature, for the girl to hold in her emotions and redirect them to something that would seem more important to her in the heat of the moment. "She can't know that you're back. We need to do this the right way and call the council. It's the only way we can be _above_ her in the end." Corey leaned against the small tea caddy that stood in the corner of Cordelia's office. The glasses clattered behind her with the shift in weight. She crossed her arms over her chest, a defensive stature taking over as all eyes fixated on her once more.

"But they didn't help us last time!" Nan leaned forward in her chair as her words squeaked out. The melodic chime of the doorbell echoed through the halls; it caused a wave of frustration to wash over the Headmistress as she watched the situation in front of her unfold.

"Yes, but now we have more proof than just my own word against hers. There are three witches in this room who can attest to Madison's death." Corey's eyes flicked between Zoe and Madison briefly as she spoke. "Zoe helped me find her. She also helped me bring her back. If we work together, Fiona doesn't stand a chance. There are more of us than there are of her. All we have to do is find out how we can get Spalding to talk."

"He's fucking _mute_, how do you expect to do that?" Queenie's head tilted upward as she let out a laugh. She knew that the musician was slowly uncoiling but she hadn't ever thought that the girl had completely lost her mind until now. Again, Cordelia interrupted the group before it could devolve into chaos.

"We have one shot at this. This plan has to be flawless, otherwise it's a suicide mission." She stood from her chair, her palms planted firmly against her desk. She leaned forward, all of her focus on Corey as she raised a single brow. "How do you want to do this?"

Like the incessant chime of a cuckoo clock, the pounding on the front door returned. Corey furrowed her brow, her head snapping in the direction of the open office door. _Where the fuck is Spalding?_ she thought, her curiosity getting the best of her as her feet slowly led her to the open door. She leaned against the doorframe, hearing the doorbell ring out once again.

_"Fucking hell,_ will someone answer the door already?" Madison threw her head back in a groan, vocalizing her frustrations over both the meeting with the coven and the never ending interruption down the hall.

"I'll get it," Corey mumbled. Her focus was already pulling her out of the room as she spoke. The further she moved away, the more that the noise from the small office became background droning that eventually transitioned into silence; the symphonic eruption of battling voices grew distant as the witches argued over what should be done about Fiona.

With each step she took, Corey felt a familiar pull; an invisible rope tugging her to her destination in silence. Usually she moved with an air of confidence, or endearment, or determination, or— dare she say— _longing_. This time, however, every step she took rippled out of her with a sense of dread, or fear, or unease as the suspense continued to build up exponentially with each shaky inch forward.

Corey's hand hovered over the doorknob for a moment as she slowed to a stop. Her eyes shifted in and out of focus as she stared at the shadow that swayed back and forth on the other side of the door. She couldn't get the best glimpse of the figure— it moved too briskly, as though whoever was waiting on the other side was anxious themselves— before the doorbell rang once more. The sudden loud, echoing chime caused her to jump slightly, the involuntary movement accompanied by a light gasp. She cleared her throat, shaking off the uneasy feeling that plagued her, as she pulled the door open.

"Misty?" She was taken aback, seemingly frozen in time, as she stared at the woman that had grown impatient on the other side of the door. Corey's eyes focused on the bare mud-covered feet that shifted back and forth before her. She blinked back her confusion as the witch pushed herself inside the doorway, a loud _thump-thump-thump_ following each step that she took.

"Can I still take that offer?" The blonde let a hand fly up into her wild hair. She gripped a handful of her straw locks briefly before returning both hands to her waist. Corey thought, for only a moment, that her copper curls would look just as large and unkempt if she was in the other girl's shoes. "The one bout stay'n here?" Misty's hands took turns wringing around her wrists anxiously as she shifted her weight back and forth. Her eyes scanned the inner walls of the academy. When she had last walked through, everything had been dark and dim. She hadn't had a chance to take in all the little details that now caught her attention.

"Wh— yeah. Yeah, of course," Corey's brow furrowed as she closed the door behind her. Her head tilted slightly as she tried to understand what was going on. "Is everything alright? The last time you were here you seemed pretty adamant about being out on your own."

"I had some time to be think'n bout it," she nodded, the backwoods cajun drawl seeping from the corners of her lips. "And maybe it is safer here." Misty shrugged, her head bobbing up and down in a nod. "Safer than the hunters stomp'n through my gard'n, set'n those painful traps cross my lil' haven'n the swamp." The clicking of heels caught her attention mid-sentence. She turned her head, her eyes landing on the group that had migrated towards the front door.

"Who's there?" Cordelia's voice carried itself across the hallway, her tone authoritative and confident and she stood tall. She held her hands in front of her as the rest of the girls collected themselves behind her. Corey looked between Misty and Cordelia for a moment. Something in their eyes shifted as they focused on each other and Misty seemed to be at a loss for words.

"Cordelia," she started. The redhead stepped forward, placing a reassuring hand against the small of Misty's back. "This is Misty Day." The realization washed over the Headmistress in an instant. Her shoulders relaxed as she hurried towards the two witches who continued to hover near the front door. "I offered her a clean bed and a warm meal when she helped us bring Madison back." Cordelia seemed to shut out the other girl's words, her focus fixated on the swamp witch that stood before her.

"You were set on fire and left for dead," her eyes scanned the blonde, taking in every little detail. Corey took a step back, feeling uncomfortable as though she was interrupting a moment that was more intimate than a first meeting. Her eyes landed on Madison as the two witches continued to hover around each other.

_'What the fuck,' _the blonde mouthed, her eyes wide.

_'I have no idea,'_ Corey responded, her brows raised in a mixture of shock and confusion. She shuffled away from the Headmistress and the swamp witch, finding that a spot near the rest of the coven was a more comfortable viewing point for the situation that unfolded before them.

"Whatever troubles you had, they're ours now," Cordelia's voice was once again loud enough for the rest of the group to hear as she found herself lightly taking both of Misty's wrists in her hands. "You're under the protection of this coven. This is your home."

"They're kinda cute," Madison whispered, leaning into Corey's side as she shuffled back amongst the rest of the group. The redhead held in her laugh, instead choosing to wrap her arm around the actress' waist. The group stood together feeling whole for the first time, as though this was where they had belonged all along.


	30. thirty

THE ALMOST CATHARTIC HUMMING OF CRICKETS quickly became a nuisance the longer the insects continued to drone on. The coven— aside from Zoe, Misty, and Cordelia— gathered together, full of worry and unease, as they tried to work through their plan. A slight gust of wind from the open parlor window sent a chill down the girls' spines. Madison leaned against the mantle of the lit fireplace, her arms crossed over her middle in frustration.

"I told you, I already have the only plan that we need." She rolled her eyes, her head bobbing to one side as she let out a sigh. "Fiona will be out of our hair in no time." She raised her brows, a slight matter-of-fact shrug guiding the end of her thought. Queenie's tongue clicked in disapproval at the blonde's continued persistence.

"Shit, girl," she groaned, leaning back in her seat. "You couldn't scare her if you walked in there with a white sheet over your head and pretended to be a ghost." The witch crossed her arms over her chest, a light laugh leaving her lips as she smirked. "Full offense intended, by the way. You can't act for shit." Corey shook her head at the interaction, fed up with the back and forth the two girls had reignited. She didn't understand how they still couldn't seem to get along.

"Thanks for your input, _Miss Cleo_," Madison hummed. Though she was being sarcastic, she couldn't find any real enjoyment in her once favorite past-time; she chalked it up to her lack of a grasp on human emotions. Queenie laughed at the blonde's mild attempt at an insult. She thought, for a moment, that she should be the bigger person and let their squabble go, but she couldn't bring herself to fully end their banter.

"That the best you got, pixie stick?" Queenie's brows raised at the blonde in a challenging manner. She watched as Madison took in a deep breath, her mouth slightly open in preparation, only to have her flame snuffed out by the older witch that stepped in front of her.

"That's enough," the redhead groaned as she stood between the girls, breaking their line of sight on one another. A smirk crept across Queenie's lips, the corners tugging upwards slowly as she watched the defeat wash over the actress. "Madison," Corey sighed. "You can't just keep saying that you have _the best plan_ and then not explain it." The blonde rolled her eyes, the scoff that left her lips having climbed up from deep within her throat.

"Well, if you'd let me, I'd've explained it already." Madison shook her head as if the answer had been obvious. Her eyes scanned the room, watching the three witches before her who seemed dissatisfied with her chosen answer. After a few moments of silence and judging eyes, she realized that they wanted her to explain, though they hadn't voiced that decision out loud.

"Oh, uhm," she cleared her throat. "So I go in there," she nodded in the direction of the stairs that led to Fiona's bedroom. "After she's taken her medication and she's hazy and unable to tell the difference between what's reality and what's just in her head." Madison uncrossed her arms to move her hands around her head briefly; an attempt to explain what she meant before she returned them to their previous position.

"And it's, like, midnight, and the radio in her bedroom starts playing some music." The girl begins to bop back and forth, letting her excitement seep into her movements. "And she comes into the room from the bathroom, confused and groggy— because, like I already said, she took her medication and one of the side-effects is probably like _hallucinations_ or something, I don't know." She paused to take a breath, not realizing that she had started to ramble.

"So she sees me, and she's confused, and I taunt her. We go back and forth for a while until, finally, _ta-dah!"_ Madison shrugged, a confident smirk on her lips. Her smirk slowly faltered as her eyes flicked between the three witches in front of her once more. Each seemed confused, or bored, or disinterested. Corey's brows furrowed as she focused on the actress, trying to understand the other girl's ramblings. Madison's shoulders slumped slightly, her brows meeting in the center with a soft crescent crease as her lips continued to turn downward into a pout.

"You guys think it's stupid," her frown was evident in her voice, which in itself was a lower volume than it had been when she was explaining her plan. It was a rhetorical question, obvious to the blonde that the group in front of her all collectively felt the same way. Corey moved to speak but was interrupted by an overly confident voice.

"Yes," Nan quipped. She nodded quickly, not noticing Madison's reaction to her retort. The blonde folded in on herself slightly, her eyes focused on the pointed toe of her heels. Queenie scolded the youngest witch, her whispers inaudible to the blonde that stood on the other side of the coffee table.

"Maddie, why don't you run through what you'd say," Corey let a hand run down the side of her face as she spoke. Her voice caught the actress' attention, her head snapping up so that her sad eyes could focus on the redhead's face. "Run your lines." The redhead nodded to her once, a silent reinforcement that she believed in the other girl wholeheartedly. "Use me as a bounce board for your idea. _I'm Fiona_. I think you're dead, that Spalding has hidden your body just as he did with the Supreme before me, and I've suddenly noticed you dancing around in my bedroom. What do you do?" Madison pushed off the fireplace slightly, collecting herself for a moment before she could start.

The transition into character, if anyone other than Corey could call _pre-death Madison_ a character, was noticeable. The blonde's shoulders squared as she held her head up high. Her presence went from appearing meek and callow— folding into the shadows to hide herself, and how she felt, from the others— to commanding, instantly the center of attention. It was only then that Nan and Queenie had realized that the Madison Montgomery they couldn't ever seem to get along with, the version of the girl that had pushed everyone else away, had never been the _real_ Madison after all.

"Surprise, bitch." Madison let out a giggle, swaying back and forth as she pretended to toss around the hem of a dress. "I bet you thought you'd seen the last of me." She smiled, her head tilted to the side as she looked up at the redhead. Her eyes narrowed at the other girl, an attempt to anticipate the direction that the musician would take with her response.

"What are you?" Corey's voice purposefully shook as she raised a hand to her chest. She swallowed hard, watching as Madison stepped closer to her. "Who brought you back?" The blonde took another threatening step forward, letting her thoughts bounce between possible directions that the conversation could take. _A ghost. Your conscious. The angel of Death._ She closed the gap between them slowly, savoring each threatening step forward.

"I'm the next Supreme." The words spilled out on their own. Her hesitation flashed over her features for a moment after she had realized the weight of what she had said. She'd already had a target on her back for saying less, however, so she pushed onward. "I brought myself back," Madison shrugged as she let one hand tug at a loose piece of her own hair, twisting it anxiously as she tried to come up with something more to say.

"We all know the playbook on this." She sighed, letting her hand fall to her side. She clasped her hands in front of her, just as she had seen Cordelia do in every argument she'd had with her mother. It was a pleading motion, though she utilized if it were one of confidence and courage. "You killed me, so we burn you at the stake. I'm gonna bring marshmallows and graham crackers to make s'mores." The blonde chuckled, again taking a step toward the redhead.

"Leave, Madison." Corey's jaw rolled, her voice commanding though it was hardly more than a whisper. Her eyes, however, told the blonde to continue. Madison gave the redhead a fake pout, the click of her tongue and a loud _awee_ quickly following her motions.

"Poor Fifi. As my powers grow, yours fade away." The blonde sighed, the playful spark in her eyes flickering for a fraction of a second before she steeled herself. "I'm in, you're out, and you can leave this world one of two ways. You can burn at the stake tomorrow, which would be messy and painful— although very entertaining— or, you can swallow these pills and got to sleep. Stop suffering, and stop our suffering. The choice is yours." Madison turned away from Corey and sauntered back to her previous spot next to the fireplace. Before the redhead could comment on the improvisation, the youngest witch piped up once more.

"How come you get to be the next Supreme?" Nan crossed her arms over her chest in frustration, breaking the guise of the scene that Corey and Madison had tried so hard to create between one another. The redhead sighed, her attention turning to the Clairvoyant that looked at them with an angry pout. "Why can't it be me?" Madison rolled her eyes, still in the headspace of who she had pretended to be around the others for so long.

"Because you have no style and your pits smell like fish sticks." The blonde shrugged as the others remained silent. The youngest witch persisted.

"Do you think I could be the next Supreme?" Nan turned to Queenie, her eyes wide. They were almost pleading, as if she could compel the other girl to say anything she wanted with the blink of an eye.

"Nan, have you been listening to anything that's been said today?" Queenie scoffed, shaking her head. "The whole point is that Cordelia _thinks_ Corey is the next Supreme. That's _literally_ why we're doing this in the first place." She unfolded her arms, sitting up straight. Her head turned, a confused look on her face as her eyes met Corey's.

"She's been listening, she just doesn't want to believe that it might not be her." Zoe interrupted the group's chatter, stepping forward as she held a wooden box in her hands. It was intricately carved and seemingly ancient. Corey's eyes zoned in on it immediately, her focus becoming tunneled on the box itself and what it could possibly contain.

"You guys suck balls." Nan muttered under her breath, turning away from the others to sulk in silence.

"You found it?" The redhead let out a sigh of relief. This was their hail mary, their saving grace. She no longer had to humor Madison's attempt at a second death. She knew that, if anything, all that the blonde's banter would do was anger the woman; cause her to lash out, or take off, or manipulate the evidence against her in her own favor.

"Yeah," Zoe nodded. She swallowed hard, trying to keep the image of the boxes' contents— the wet, gummy, eraser-like muscle— out of her head. "It took a locator spell, and a few hours of focusing, but I finally found it hidden in the walls." She shook the box slightly. She immediately regretted her decision when she heard the subtle sloshing back and forth as the slime followed it's maker within the engraved entrapment.

"Good," Corey nodded once. She folded her hands in front of her politely, her gaze finally leaving the box within the brunette's hands. She cleared her throat, her eyes scanning the group. The other witches looked between Corey and Zoe, trying to piece together the plan. The redhead returned her attention to her friend, her tongue darting out and anxiously wetting her lips. "Bring it to Cordelia. She'll know what to do with it when the time comes."


	31. thirty one

THE IDEA OF WAITING FOR SOMETHING ALWAYS made the experience of waiting all the more exciting— at least, that was what Corey had always been told. However, the longer that the Coven waited for the Council to come to their collective decision, the more the witch dreaded the potential final outcome. Each of her worst fears surfaced within her mind, one after the other.

_That their secret weapon would prove to be useless._

_That, because Madison had been brought back, the Council could not confirm that she had ever been dead in the first place._

_That Fiona would find a way to push the blame onto someone else even with all of the evidence against her._

Corey took in a deep breath, her chest shaking anxiously as she inhaled. Myrtle Snow's voice carried through the halls, a regal cadence that held itself higher than anyone else.

"You must think you're very clever, Fiona Goode." The redhead could hear the smile in the woman's voice, the soft click of her heels echoing as she stepped closer to the Supreme that sat in the center of the room.

"I do, I do think I'm very clever. I am, after all, the Supreme." There was a lingering arrogance in Fiona's voice. She still, somehow, thought she had the upper hand. The Supreme knew that the Council had only returned with hard evidence, but she was sure that it had nothing to do with her. She covered her own tracks. Or, she thought, Spalding had covered her tracks for her.

"Sadly, you are. Though, given the state of this coven and this school, one could be forgiven for thinking we've been without a Supreme for the last forty years." Myrtle's tone was teasing, condescending, _hoity-toity_. She wanted to savor the moment, the feeling of knowing she had Fiona in the palm of her hand.

"If you don't like the way I'm running things, take it up with the Council." Fiona's _you-can't-touch-me_ attitude seeped through her voice. Corey could barely hold in her scoff. Her eyes focused on Madison; the blonde stood across from her, fiddling with the silk scarf that covered her neck. She was nervous. The autumnal chill was the only excuse she needed, having everyone around her knowing that— with her size and stature— she would otherwise become easily sick. That was, at least, before she had been brought back from the dead. Now, she wasn't sure what, if anything, could ail her.

"Well, that's just it. You don't run things, you run off." Myrtle raised her voice, the anger seeping through her words. "You were absent from last year's Summit Gathering, three Winter Petitions remain unsigned, you've failed to appoint a new Chancellor in over a decade, and— instead of allowing the next Supreme to rise properly— you've taken to killing off members of our already dwindling coven." She stomped her foot, her volume continuing to rise as she narrowed in on the woman in front of her. Myrtle was seething, only a foot between herself and the Supreme who didn't seem to be at all phased over the situation at hand.

"Watch yourself, Myrtle." Fiona couldn't help but laugh, her head shaking at the accusations the other woman was throwing around. "You cannot point fingers like that without proper repercussions." She smirked, bringing her lit cigarette to her lips. Her eyes narrowed at the wild-haired woman that stood before her, watching the smirk that crept across her face with baited breath.

"Madison?" Myrtle's eyes remained on the Supreme as she called out for the actress. Corey watched the blonde take in a single, shaky breath. She tried to encourage herself to stand before the woman who had once taken a sharpened letter opener to her throat. Madison squared her shoulders and closed her eyes for a moment, collecting herself. She gave Corey a reassuring smile as she made her way into the same parlor she had pretended to taunt Fiona in the night before.

The Supreme froze, her jaw slightly open as she struggled to understand what was happening. Her eyes focused on the blonde in front of her; she seemed more fearful of her presence than the older woman had remembered her being. The actress' skin was dull and gray, a sheer memory of its once porcelain glow. Fiona furrowed her brow, trying to decipher the chess piece in place before her. She truly couldn't tell if Madison was afraid of her, if it even was Madison, or if it was all an elaborate act to get her right where Myrtle wanted her.

"I'm sorry." Fiona stammered slightly, trying to regain her composure. "I'm either confused or really bored, because I don't understand how I could have killed this girl if she's standing here with us right now." Her head tilted at the actress, her gaze becoming nothing more than a silent threat. Madison rolled her eyes, shaking her head. She knew that this was the route that the Supreme would take, though she somehow hadn't seen it coming.

"Because you _did_ kill me, you bitch," Madison scoffed. She tugged her scarf from her neck to reveal the large gash across her throat. Fiona swallowed hard, her eyes wide. She felt her heart sink to her stomach. The longer she stared at the clean, scarred slice across Madison's throat, the more that the only sound she could hear had engulfed her senses. It was her own pulse— quick, with no discernible rhythm to it. All that Fiona could truly make out was its loud _thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump_. Suddenly, the sound of Myrtle's voice returned.

"This is the second time, while you were under this roof, that a witch has gone missing from this place. And, in both instances, you were the last person to see either one of them alive." Myrtle held her hands behind her back, her shoulders continuing to maintain her composure. It seemed that, with each new piece of evidence that she brought forward in front of Fiona, she grew taller. The Supreme refused to shrivel, to wither away.

"Well, now, that seems like a false statement there, Myrtle, doesn't it? How could I be the last one to see Madison alive if she's standing right in front of us all at this very moment?" Again, Fiona was being facetious. She pointed her lit cigarette at the Councilwoman, jabbing it towards her with each word. For each verbal poke and prod, the blonde rebutted with a physical one.

"Because _someone_ brought her back, with a little extra help from their friends. The witch that both the Council and this coven believe to be your true-born successor— our Supreme Elect— Corinna Nicks." Myrtle's proud expression only grew larger when the realization washed over Fiona's features. The woman's face fell; her mouth hung open as her eyes scanned back and forth. She tried desperately to look back on their past encounters, to understand where she had gone wrong, to find what signs she could have missed.

"I told you that you fucked with the wrong witch, Fiona," Corey muttered under her breath. Her back pressed against the cold wall. It sent a chill down her spine, both the feeling of the cold wood and being unable to see Fiona's face from her position in the hallway.

"The time has come for you to pay for every crime you have committed." Myrtle's voice wavered slightly as she watched the anger flash from deep within Fiona's eyes.

"I am innocent until proven guilty. And, so far, you have not proven a goddamn thing." The Supreme leaned forward, the venom in her voice evident. Though she was angry, and she let it seep through her tone, her demeanor was otherwise impenetrable. She was a brick wall, the emotions of the room bouncing from her hard shell and hurling towards the Council instead.

"The Council would like to remind you: no witch has been tried, convicted, and burned at the stake since 1926." Myrtle paused for a moment, letting the suspense get the best of Fiona. She knew that, with the moment the truth finally out in the open, the coven's nearly half-century of neglect would finally be over. She waved the actress off towards the hall before speaking once more. "I'd like to call our final witness. Spalding, stand before us."

Corey held her breath; this was their make or break moment. If Cordelia hadn't managed to complete the spell, their entire plan would crumble. Madison wrapped her arms around the musician as she approached, her heart racing. The girl stood rigid for a moment before she relaxed within the familiar embrace. They waited, patiently, for the trial to continue.

"How are you feeling today, Spalding?" Myrtle's voice was much softer than it had been previously.

"I feel fine." Spalding's southern drawl crawled from the back of his throat, no more than a croak. He gasped at the sound of his own voice, immediately searching for the source. "How am I— whose tongue is this?"

"Yours." Myrtle cleared her throat, an attempt to keep any sign of her joy over the situation under the radar. "The girls found it, hidden away. Someone enchanted it, isn't that right?" The conversation continued back and forth. Corey's focus, however, remained on the blonde beside her. Their last ditch effort worked. Spalding _finally_ spoke.

"Yes."

"Whoever enchanted it wanted you to tell the truth. But that was the last thing you wanted to do, so you cut it out of your own head."

"Yes."

"Did you kill Madison Montgomery?"

"Madison Montgomery is alive."

"That wasn't the question."

"No. I didn't kill her."

"But you know who did."

"Yes. I do."

"Was Madison killed by the same person as Anna Leigh Leighton."

"MMMhh—" Spalding refused to answer. He chose, instead, to clamp his hand over his mouth. He needed to keep the words inside, to keep the confession from leaping forward.

"Please answer the question, Spalding."

"Yes." Spalding's lips trembled, his voice muffled from the hand that remained in place.

"Say their name."

"Please don't make me." His hand finally fell from its place, forming a fist at his side.

"Say. Their. Name."

"F—"

"Say it."

"Fiona. Fiona Goode." His voice caught in his throat, a simple whimper out into the void.

"Fiona Goode, you have given us no choice. You have been found guilty of causing intentional bodily harm to multiple daughters of Salem." Cecily paused for a moment, taking in a deep breath. She looked at her hands and swallowed hard, quickly returning her attention to the woman that sat before them. "Burn the witch."

"Seconded." Quinten's voice remained poised and collected. His demeanor, however, changed drastically; his shoulders slumped forward, his face filled with sorrow, his hands picked at the cuffs of his shirt sleeves. He couldn't bring himself to look at the Supreme, to look at the _someone_ in front of him that he had once called a friend. It was almost as if he had never truly known the woman at all.

"The decision of this council is unanimous and final." Myrtle spoke quickly. Her voice was enough to pull the woman's attention back from the warlock to herself for only a moment. Cecily stood from her seat at the long table, the feet of her chair screeching across the floorboards filled the room briefly. Her voice quickly pulled everyone's attention to herself once more.

"The Council of Witchcraft decrees that— for the murders of our sister witch Madison Montgomery and our previous Supreme Anna Leigh Leighton— you, Fiona Goode, are hereby sentenced to death by fire." The room fell silent once more. The only sound Corey could hear quickly became her own breathing, the anticipation keeping her in place within the hallway. Then, suddenly, the collective _click, click, click._ The council had made their decision; Fiona was going to die.


End file.
